Skip to main content

Full text of "Twenty-one years' work in the Holy Land : (a record and a summary), June 22, 1865 - June 22, 1886"

See other formats 


AU'V*-W.^li'«'fv  I.' 


wenty-One 
YEARS'  Work 
'"  ™«  Holy  Land. 


^17  ''hw  i  ■ 


■•'-'r. 


■    <■    k  iU    ■ 


■J  I 


''^'^:;*'i- 


W^'0i' 


•      -  4,    ■.• ; 


-!>  >»•. 


<ii--- 


,.-^..-_  ,*'V-*^", 


M 


k 


p 


<^ 


^ 


o 


I'Al.liSriM;   liXl'l.URATIOX  FL'Np. 


TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'  WORK 


IN    THE 


HOLY     LAND: 

(A  RECORD  AND  A  SUMMARY) 
JUNE     22,    1865— JUNE    22,    1886. 

Published  for  the  Committee  of  the  Palestine  Exploratioii  Fund. 

FIFTH     THOUSAND. 


Eoniron 

ALEXANDER     P.     WATT, 
2,  Paternoster  Square. 


1889. 
ALL    RIGHTS    RESERVED. 


LONDON  : 

HARRISON   AND   SONS,    PRINTERS   IN   ORDINARY   TO   IIER    MAJESTY, 

ST.    iMARTIN's   LANE. 


PREFACE. 


This  little  work  is  designed  to  answer  a  question 
often  put, — why  the  Society  has  no  resume  of  its  work 
for  popular  use  ?  This  volume  endeavours  to  give 
such  a  resume ;  it  points  out  in  general  terms  the 
Biblical  gains  resulting  from  the  work  of  the  Society  ; 
and  it  shows,  also  in  general  terms,  what  remains  to 
be  done. 

The  detailed  answer  to  the  inquiry  as  to  the  actual 
results  of  our  work  is  to  be  found  in  the  great  work 
called  the  '*  Survey  of  Western  Palestine,"  and  in  the 
maps  published  by  the  Society. 

The  present  moment  has  been  chosen  for  the 
appearance  of  this  book,  because  this  day  is  the 
twenty-first  anniversary  of  the  Foundation  of  the 
Society. 

W.  B. 

June  22,  1886, 

1,  Adam  Street,  Adelpiii. 


LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS. 


The  Dome  of  the  Rock  Frontispiece 

Cromlech  in  Galilee...          ...  22 

Base  of  Column        ...          ...  38 

Plan  of  Church         ...         ...  39 

Columbaria,  near  Beit  J ibrin  40 

Tell  Hum       41 

Niche  at  Banias        ...         ...  41 

Plan  of  Synagogue  ...          ...  41 

Ornamental  Work  from  Ne- 

bratein  and  Kerazeh          42,  43 

Church  on  Mount  Gerizim  ...  46 

Synagogue  at  Kefr  Birim     ...  47 

E.xcavalions  at  Jerusalem  ...  48 
Plan     showing    the     various 

theories    of    the   Walls   of 

Jerusalem  ...          ..,          ...  49 

Jewish  Lamp...         ...         ...  54 

Characters  on  the  Foundation 

Stones         ...         ...         ...  5^ 

Inscribed  Jar  Handles         ...  57 

Gallery  near  "  E  "  Wall  ...  58 
Capitals  supporting  the  Dome 

of  the  Rock           60 

Lamps  found  in  the  E.xcava- 

tions            ...          ...          ...  61 

View  of  the  jerafeh  Valley  ...  65 

Kadesh  Barnc.          ...          ...  67 

Haifa 78 

Cromlech  in  Galilee 79 

Tomb  at  Teiasir        83 

Crusading  Castle       ...          ...  88 

Rock  Altar 90 


'Ain  Jidy        92 

Mar  Saba       94 

vSea  of  Galilee           ...         ...  98 

Beersheba       ...          ...          .•■  103 

Gilgal 107 

Tomb  of  Phinehas    ...          ...  108 

Tomb  of  Eleazar      ...          ...  109 

Ed  Dhaheriyeh          ...  1 12 

Mount  Tabor            113 

Rock  Rimmon           ...         ...  117 

Colonnade  at  Samaria          ...  123 

Gath? 126 

Tomb  of  Simon  the  Just     ...  130 

El  Medyeh 131 

Diagram  of  Eastern  Triangu- 

lation           137 

Cromlech,  near  Heshbon     ...  138 

View  in  Wady  in  Arabeh    ...  140 

Lake  of  Honis           ...          ...  155 

Tomb  of  Nicodemus           ...  157 

Inscription     ...          ...          ...  167 

Head  of  Hadrian     171 

Gaza  Statue  ...         ...         ...  172 

The  Stone  of  Bethphage     ...  177 

Sassanian  Building  at  Amman  179 

Plan  and  Section  of  ditto    ...  179 

Rude  Stone  Monuments    184,  185 

Tomb  near  Jeremiah's  Grotto  187 

Plan  of  ditto,  ditto 1S9 

Jacob's  Well 195,  196 

Va.se 198 

Excavations  ...         ...         ...  204 


CONTENTS, 


CHAPTER  PAGE 

PREFACE         3 

I,  THE    FOUNDATION    OF   THE    SOCIETY    -           -            -            -  7 
II.    THE   CHRONICLE   OF    THE   SOCIETY        -            -            -            -  22 

III.    THE    FIRST    EXPEDITION 38 

IV.    THE    EXCAVATIONS    AT  JERUSALEM       -            -            -            -  48 

V.    THE    DESERT    OF   THE    EXODUS      -----  64 

VI.    THE   SURVEY   OF    WESTERN    PALESTINE          -           •            -  73 

VII.    THE   ARCH.^OLOGICAL    EXPEDITION      .            -            -            -  128  _ 

VIII.    THE    SURVEY    OF    EASTERX    PALESTINE            -            -             -  133 

IX.    THE   GEOLOGICAL    SURVEY I40 

X.    SMALLER    EXPEDITIONS           -            -                                       -            -  1 50 

XI.    THE    MONUMENTS    OF   THE    COUNTRY              -            -            -  157 

XII.    OKITUARY -            -             -  201 

XIII.    THE    WORK    OF   THE    FUTURE 2O4 

APPENDICES. 

I.    CHRONOLOGICAL    SUM.NLVRV    OK    THE    FUND's    WORK     -  21,5 

II.  CAPTAIN    CONDEr's    IDE.NTIlTCATiONS             -            -            -  221 


THE   SURVEY   OF   WESTERN   PALESTINE. 


This  great  Work  embodies  the  whole  of  the  researches  conducted 
by  the  Society.      It  consists  of — 

1.  The    GREAT    MAP  of  Western    Palestine.     In  26  sheets,  on 

the  scale  of  one  inch  to  the  mile. 

2.  The     MEMOIRS   arranged   according    to    sheets.     By    Major 

Conder,  D.C.L.,  and  Lieut. -Col.  Kitchener,  R.E.     In  3  vols. 

3.  The  NAME  LI.STS,  containing  10,000  names  collected  during 

the  Survey.  Transliterated  and  translated  by  Professor 
Palmer. 

4.  The  FAUNA  and  FLORA  of  Palestine.     By  the  Rev.  Canon 

Tristram. 

5.  SPECIAL  PAPERS  on  Various  Points  of  Sacred  Archeology. 

By  Col.  Sir  Charles  Wilson,  K.C.B.,  K.C.M.G.,  F.R.S., 
Col.  Sir  Charles  Warren,  G.C.M.G.,  K.C.B.,  F.R.S.,  Major 
Conder,  D.C. L.,  R.E.,  M.   Clermont  Ganneau,  and  others. 

6.  JERUSALEM.     With  a  portfolio   of  60  plates.     By  Col.  Sir 

Charles  Warren  and  }tIajor  Conder.  Contains  an  account 
of  all  the  researches  which  have  been  made  in  the  Holy 
Land  up  to  the  year  1884. 

7.  THE   GEOLOGICAL   SURVEY   OF  WESTERN  PALES- 

TINE.    By  Edwanl  Hull,  F.R.S. 

These  volumes  are  illustrated  by  many  hundreds  of  drawings, 
photographs,  maps,  and  plans,  chiefly  drawn  by  Major  Conder  and 
Lieut. -Col.  Kitchener.  No  expense  has  been  spared  to  make  the 
work  complete  and  worthy  of  its  subject.  No  more  important  con- 
tribution to  Sacred  Geography  and  Archeology  has  ever  been  made. 
Only  500  copies  were  printed,  of  which  some  copies  remain,  and 
are  sold  for  the  Committee  by  their  agent,  Alexander  P.  Watt, 
Publisher  and  Literary  Agent,  34,  Paternoster  Row. 


TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'  WORK. 


'c«C(*^i 


CHAPTER    I. 


FOUNDATION   OF   THE   SOCIETY. 


H  E  Society- 
known  as  the 
Palestine  Explo- 
ration Fund  was 
first  formally 
constituted  at  a 
public  meeting 
held  in  Willis's 
Rooms  on  Fri- 
day, June  22nd, 
1S65,  the  Arch- 
bishop of  York 
being  in  the 
chair. 

The      objects 
and      intentions 


of  the  founders    were   the   prosecution  of  s)-stematic 


8  TWENTY-ONE    YEARS'    IVOA'A'. 

and  scientific  research  in  all  the  branches  of  inquiry 
connected  with  the  Holy  Land,  and  the  principal 
reason  alleged  for  conducting  this  inquiry  was  the 
illustration  of  the  Bible  which  might  be  expected  to 
follow  such  an  investigation.  In  the  following  pages 
the  reader  will  learn  briefly  how  far  the  Society  has 
been  successful. 

In  his  opening  address,  the  Archbishop  laid  dow^n 
certain  principles  on  which,  he  said,  the  work  of  the 
society  should  be  based.  It  is,  in  fact,  in  recognition 
of  these  principles  that  the  work  has  always  been 
carried  on.     These  were  : — 

1.  That  whatever  was  undertaken  should  be  carried 

out  on  scientific  principles. 

2.  That  the  Society  should,  as  a  body,  abstain  from 

controversy. 

3.  That  it  should  not  be  started,  nor  should  it  be 

conducted,  as  a  religious  society. 
The  object  of  the  first  law  was  to  ensure  that  the 
results  of  inquiry  and  exploration,  whatever  they 
might  prove,  should  command  from  the  world  the 
same  acceptance  as  a  new  fact  reported  from  a 
physical  laboratory,  and  that  the  work  should  be 
faced  in  the  same  spirit  of  fearless  investigation  into 
the  truth  as  obtains  in  scientific  research.  The  con- 
duct of  the  principal  part  of  the  work  by  officers  of 
the  Ro)-al  l'2ngineers  has  effectually  ensured  this 
object.     No    dispute   has   ever   arisen,    nor    will    an) 


FOUNDATION   OF   THE  SOCIETY. 


question  ever  arise,  concerning  the  statements  or 
reports  furnished  b}'  the  Society's  agents.  Those  who 
remember  the  bickerings  which  formerly  prevailed 
over  every  estimate  as  to  measurements,  heights, 
distances,  and  positions,  as  one  book  of  Syrian  travel 
followed  another,  will  recognise  the  enormous  advan- 
tage of  having  these  points  ascertained  and  laid 
down  for  us  once  for  all  by  men  whose  official  position 
and  professional  reputation,  as  well  as  the  methods 
of  research  which  they  adopted,  place  their  reports 
beyond  question. 

As  regards  the  second  point,  it  was  at  first  intended 
that  the  Committee  should  place  on  record  nothing 
but  the  bare  facts  discovered.  Wilson's  Report  of 
1866,  and  Warren's  Letters  of  1867-70,  contain,  in  fact, 
very  little  indeed  beyond  the  barest  facts.  But  it  was 
presently  found  impossible,  and,  indeed,  undesirable, 
to  keep  out  of  the  Society's  publications  the  element 
of  personal  opinion.  Warren  recorded,  for  instance, 
after  his  return,  in  addition  to  the  official  report  of 
his  excavations,  the  conclusions  which  he  had  come 
to  and  their  bearing  upon  the  problems.  Conder, 
in  his  reports  written  in  the  field  during  the  Surve}', 
set  down  from  the  very  first,  and  unreservedly,  his 
own  conclusions  as  to  identifications  and  topography. 
The  subscribers  to  the  Socict}',  it  was  then  discovered. 
desired  nothing  more  than  the  publication  of  such 
arguments  and  sucii  conclusions.     Tlicy  were  found 


lo  TWENTY-ONE    YEARS'    WORK. 

to  give  life  to  the  bare  facts  of  the  survey.  These, 
and  other  dissertations,  views  and  suggestions,  made 
the  pages  of  the  Society's  Journal  full  of  interest. 
But  for  them  the  Quarterly  Statement  would  have 
been  no  more  interesting  than  a  volume  of  name 
lists,  and  the  Committee  would  have  lost  their  most 
powerful  means  of  keeping  up  and  extending  the 
interest  in  their  work.  At  the  same  time,  these 
arguments  and  conclusions  have  always  been  pub- 
lished with  reserve.  They  are  not  advanced  as  the 
opinions  of  the  Committee,  which,  as  a  Committee, 
has  no  opinion,  but  are  signed  by  their  author,  and 
he  alone,  as  is  stated  in  every  number,  is  responsible 
for  them. 

The  third  principle  secured  the  independence  of 
the  Association  in  preventing  it  from  being  attached 
to  any  religious  body,  church,  or  creed.  As  then  con- 
stituted, and  as  it  now  exists,  it  simply  invites  support 
from  all  those  persons  who  happen  to  be  interested  in 
a  certain  collection  of  books,  apart  from  any  doctrines 
which  may  have  been  deduced  from  those  books,  or 
any  opinion  as  to  the  weight  of  those  books,  and 
apart  from  the  fact  that  to  very  many  these  are,  and 
always  will  be,  the  most  precious  books  in  the  world. 
The  Society  numbers  among  its  supporters  Christians 
and  Jews — Christians,  that  is,  of  every  church,  Protes- 
tants and  Catholics,  Anglicans,  Greeks  and  Romans, 
Nonconformists    and    Unitarians.      No    questions    of 


FOUNDATION  OF   THE  SOCIETY.  n 


doctrine  will  be  found  treated  in  the  Society's  publi- 
cations, nor  any  of  ecclesiastical  discipline  and 
authority,  nor  any  which  concern  the  genuineness 
and  authenticity  of  the  books  concerned. 

At  the  outset  of  this  record  it  is  the  special  duty 
of  the  Committee  to  express,  firstly,  their  profound 
gratitude  to  the  War  Office  for  granting  the  services 
of  Royal  Engineers  for  the  execution  of  the  work,  and 
secondly,  their  sense  of  the  surprising  good  fortune 
which  has  attended  them  in  the  personal  character  and 
the  remarkable  abilities  of  the  officers  who  have  worked 
for  them.  Among  the  many  distinguished  officers 
who  at  present  adorn  the  scientific  branch  of  the 
Service  there  are  none  more  distinguished  than  Sir 
Charles  Wilson  and  Sir  Charles  Warren.  There  was 
no  officer  of  the  corps  more  highly  esteemed  than 
the  late  Major  Anderson.  As  for  Captain  Conder,  he 
will  be  regarded  as  nothing  short  of  a  personal  friend 
by  everyone  who  reads  these  pages  ;  he  has  been  for 
fifteen  long  years  the  chief  prop  and  mainstay  of 
the  Society  ;  he  is  par  excellence  the  Surveyor  of  the 
Holy  Land.  The  military  record  of  Lieutenant- 
Colonel  Kitchener  promises  to  eclipse  his  civil  dis- 
tinction. But  it  must  never  be  forgotten  that  before 
he  went  to  Egypt  he  surveyed  Galilee  for  this  Society 
and  Cyprus  for  the  Colonial  Office. 

At  the  first  meeting  some  hopes  were  put  forward 
by  the  speakers  which    have    been    realised   beyond 


12  TWENTY-ONE    YEARS'    IVORK. 

expectation,  and  some  which  have  been  so  far  dis- 
appointed. After  this  lapse  of  time  it  is  interesting 
to  recall  what  was  said  and  what  was  thought  on  that 
occasion.  For  instance,  it  was  then  confidently  ex- 
pected by  ever^'body  that  a  few  excavation^  in 
Jerusalem  would  quickly  decide  the  whole  of  the 
vexed  questions  as  to  the  holy  sites.  Sir  Austin 
Layard,  fresh  from  the  excavations  which  enabled 
the  world  to  reconstruct  the  history  of  a  long-lost 
people,  spoke  hopefully  of  the  light  which  might 
be  thrown  upon  the  ancient  history,  the  arts,  and 
the  architecture  of  the  Jewish  nation  by  examining 
the  mounds  which  were  already  known  to  exist  in 
the  country,  and  by  excavating  on  the  sites  of  the 
ancient  cities.  Our  excavations  since  that  time  in  Jeru- 
salem and  elsewhere  have  yielded  a  very  small  amount 
of  information  on  Jewish  art,  though  something  on 
Jewish  architecture,  and,  as  yet,  there  have  been  no 
excavations  at  all  of  the  mounds,  high  places,  and 
ancient  sites,  outside  Jerusalem,  with  the  exception 
of  the  mounds  at  Jericho  ;  that  is  a  work  which  we 
hope  to  take  in  hand  when  we  have  accomplished 
what  we  have  already  commenced.  The  Count  de 
Vogiie,  at  the  same  meeting,  v.cnt  so  far,  in  his  zeal 
for  excavation,  as  to  say  that  nothing  then  remained 
above  ground  in  Palestine  to  be  discovered.  Yet  since 
that  day  the  Moabite  Stone,  the  Phoenician  inscription 
in  the  Pool  of  Siloam,  the  stone  of  Herod's  Temple, 


FOUNDATION  OF   THE   SOCIETY.  13 

the  head  of  Hadrian's  Statue,  the  Stone  of  Bethphage, 
the  Stone  of  Zoheleth  (i  Kings  i.  9),  the  boundary 
inscriptions  of  Gezer  (Joshua  xvi.  3-10,  &c.),  the 
Sassanian  monument  at  Amman,  the  Palace  of 
Mashita,  many  ancient  synagogues,  and  hundreds  of 
ruined  towns,  all  above  ground,  have  been  discovered. 
Sir  Roderick  Murchison  advocated  a  geological  and 
geographical  survey  of  the  country, — we  have  since 
executed  both  of  these  Surveys,  with  results  of  far 
greater  importance  than  he  expected.  Mr.  Palgrave 
dwelt  upon  the  ethnological  side  and  the  importance 
of  noting  the  points  of  distinction  among  the  people 
now  inheriting  the  country.  "  The  Land,"  he  said,  "  is 
a  land  of  petrifactions,  where  remains  which  might 
elsewhere  have  perished  or  become  wholly  decom- 
posed still  remain  intact  and  preserve  their  distinctive 
lineaments."  The  Dean  of  Westminster  took  a 
similar  line  in  recommending  a  careful  study  of  the 
manners  and  customs  of  the  people.  We  have  done 
something  towards  this  in  publishing  the  papers 
of  Mrs.  Finn  and  Mr.  Klein,  while  our  officers  have, 
in  the  course  of  the  Survey,  made  many  valuable 
observations  on  the  subject.  But  we  are  now 
embarked  upon  an  enterprise  in  this  direction  on  a 
far  greater  scale  than  that  cortemplated  by 
Dean  Stanley.  The  spirit  of  research  has,  since 
his  speech  on  that  day,  become  more  scientific. 
Such  an  inquiry  as  that  then  contemplated  would  have 


14  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'  WORK. 

been  neither  scientific  nor  complete.  It  can  now, 
thanks  to  the  hibours  of  the  Anthropological  Society, 
be  both  scientific  and  complete.  As  will  be  seen 
presently,  we  hope  to  make  this  inquiry  in  a  more 
systematic  manner  than  was  then  contemplated,  and 
over  a  far  wider  area.  Lastly,  Prof  Owen  and  Canon 
Tristram  spoke  of  the  natural  history  of  the  country 
and  of  the  many  gaps  which  then  existed  in  our  know- 
ledge. Thanks  mainly  to  the  exertions  of  the  latter 
gentleman  we  have  been  able  to  fill  up  many  of  those 
gaps. 

The  meeting  was  followed  by  an  appeal  for  funds, 
letters  v/ere  inserted  in  the  papers,  and  the  other 
usual  methods  were  adopted  to  obtain  publicity, 
Mr.  George  Grove,  the  foremost  among  the  original 
founders  of  the  Society,  being  its  first  honorary  secre- 
tary and  spokesman. 

The   first    Committee   consisted    of    the   following 

gentlemen  : — 

Archbishop  of  York.  Samuel  Gurney,  M.P. 

Duke  of  Argyll.  R.  Culling  Hanbury,  M.P. 

Duke  of  Devonshire.  A.  H.  Layard,  M.P. 

Earl  of  Derby.  Walter  Morrison,  M.P. 

Earl  Russell.  John  Abel  Smith,  M.P. 

Earl  of  Shaftesbury.  William  Tite,  M.P. 

Pjishop  of  London.  Dean  of  St.  Paul's. 

Bishop  of  Oxford.  Dean  of  Westminster. 

Bishop  of  Ely.  Dean  of  Christ  Church. 

The  Speaker.  Sir  Henry  Rawlinson,  K.C.B. 
Sir  S.  Morton  Peto,  Bart.       Sir  Roderick  Murchison,  K.C.B. 


FOUNDATION  OF  THE  SOCIETY. 


IS 


Prof.  Owen,  F.R  S. 
Rev.  Prof.  Pusey,  D.D. 
Canon  Ernest  Hawkins. 
Rev.  E.  H.  Plumptre. 
Rev.  A.  W.  Thorold. 
Rev.  H.  P  Tristram,  F.R.S. 
Rev.  George  Williams. 
Rev.  S.  Martin. 
Rev.  N.  Macleod,  D.D. 
Dr.  Joseph  Hooker. 
Dr.  William  Smith. 
W.  Hepworth  Dixon. 


J.  Fergusson,  F.R.S. 

F.  Waymouth  Gibb  C.B. 
Ambrose  de  Lisle. 
Samuel  Morley. 

John  Murray. 
Antonio  Panizzi. 
Henry  Reeve. 

G.  Gilbert  Scott. 

William  Spottiswoode,  F.R.S. 

William  Tipping. 

W.  S.  W.  Vaux,  F.R.S. 

Mr.  George  Grove  {^Hon.  Sec.) 


Mr.  John  Abel  Smith,  M.P.,  and  Mr.  Robert 
Culling  Hanbury  were  the  first  treasurers  ;  they 
were  subsequently  succeeded  by  Mr.  Walter  Morrison. 
The  hon.  secretary  was  afterwards  joined  by  the 
Rev.  F.  W.  Holland,  and  a  sub-committee  consisting 
of  the  Archbishop  of  York,  the  Dean  of  Westminster, 
and  Prof.  Owen  was  appointed  to  draw  up  a  state- 
ment of  the  general  objects  of  the  Association. 
When  this  statement  was  produced,  in  October,  1865, 
the  Committee  of  45  had  been  swollen  to  the  number 
of  79,  and  then  contained,  in  addition  to  the  first 
published  list,  such  names  as  Lord  Strangford,  Lord 
Stratford  do  Redclifife,  Lord  Carnarvon,  Sir  Moses 
Montefiore,  Dean  Howson,  Dr.  Temple,  Dr.  Vaughan, 
Dr.  Allon,  Dr.  Porter,  Prof  Rawlinson,  Mr.  Beresford 
Hope,  Mr.  Macgregor,  and  many  others  of  like  weight 
and  note. 


1 6  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'  WORK. 

The  Original  Prospectus,  when  it  left  the  hands  of 
the  sub-committee,  was  as  follows  : — 

No  country  should  be  of  so  much  interest  to  us  as  that  in 
which  the  documents  of  our  Faith  were  written,  and  the 
momentous  events  they  describe  enacted.  At  the  same  time 
no  country  more  urgently  requires  illustration.  The  face 
of  the  landscape,  the  climate,  the  productions,  the  manners, 
dress,  and  modes  of  life  of  its  inhabitants,  differ  in  so  many 
material  respects  from  those  of  the  western  world,  that 
without  an  accurate  knowledge  of  them  it  is  not  too  much 
to  say  that  the  outward  Ibrm  and  complexion  of  the  events 
and  much  of  the  significance  of  the  records  must  reiuain  more 
or  less  obscure.  Even  to  a  casual  traveller  in  the  Holy 
Land  the  Bible  becomes,  in  its  form,  and  therefore  to  some 
extent  in  its  substance,  a  new  book.  Many  an  allusion 
which  hitherto  had  no  meaning,  or  had  lain  unnoticed, 
starts  into  prominence  and  throws  a  light  over  a  whole 
passage.  It  is  not  to  be  expected  that  the  modes  of  life 
and  manners  of  tlie  ancient  Israelites  will  be  revealed  by 
any  discovery  of  monuments  in  the  same  fulness  that  those 
of  the  Egyptians  and  Assyrians  have  been.  But  still,  infor- 
mation of  value  cannot  fail  to  be  obtained  in  the  process. 
Much  would  be  gained  by  obtaining  an  accurate  map  of  the 
country ;  by  settling  disputed  points  of  to])Ography ;  by 
identifying  ancient  towns  of  Holy  Writ  with  the  modern 
villages  which  are  their  successors  ;  by  bringing  to  light  the 
remains  of  so  many  races  and  generations  which  must  lie 
concealed  under  the  accumulation  of  rubbish  and  ruins  on 
which  those  villages  stand  ;  by  ascertaining  the  course  of 
the  ancient  roads  ;  by  the  discovery  of  coins,  inscriptions, 
and  other  relics — in  short,  by  doing  at  leisure  and  system- 
atically that  which  has  hitherto  been  entirely  neglected, 
or  done  only  in  a  fragmentary  manner  by  the  occasional 


FOUNDATION  OF  THE  SOCIETY.  17 

unassisted  efforts  of  hurried  and  inexperienced  travellers. 
Who  can  doubt  that  if  the  same  intelligence,  zeal,  know- 
ledge, and  outlay  were  applied  to  the  exploration  of  Pales- 
tine that  have  recently  been  brought  to  bear  on  Halicar- 
nassus,  Carthage,  Cyrene — places  without  a  single  sacred 
association  and  with  little  bearing  on  the  Bible — the  result 
would  be  a  great  accession  to  our  knowledge  of  the 
successive  inhabitants  of  Syria  —  Canaanite,  Israelite, 
Roman  ? 

Hitherto  the  opportunity  for  such  systematic  research  has 
been  wanting.  It  appears  now  to  have  arrived.  The  visit 
of  H.R.H.  the  Prince  of  Wales  to  the  Mosque  at  Hebron 
has  broken  down  the  bar  which  for  centuries  obstructed 
the  entrance  of  Christians  to  that  most  venerable  of  the 
sanctuaries  of  Palestine ;  and  may  be  said  to  have  thrown 
open  the  whole  of  Syria  to  Christian  research. 

The  survey  of  Jerusalem  at  present  in  progress  under  the 
direction  of  Captain  Wilson,  R.E.  (a  survey  supported  by 
the  private  liberality  of  a  single  person  ;  as  it  proved,  the 
grant  of  500/.  made  by  the  generous  person  referred  to, 
was  unequal  to  the  work,  which  was  only  accomplished 
by  the  generosity  of  Captain  Wilson,  who  gave  his  whole 
time  and  labour  for  nothing),  has  shown  how  much  may 
be  done  with  tact,  temper,  and  opportunity,  without 
arousing  the  opposition  of  the  authorities  or  inhabitants. 
Recent  letters  of  Sir  H.  James  and  others  in  the  Times 
have  borne  testimony  to  the  remarkable  fitness  of  Captain 
Wilson  for  such  undertakings,  and  have  pointed  out 
other  places  where  explorations  might  be  advantageously 
carried  on. 

//  is  therefore  proposed  to  raise  a  fund  to  be  applied  to 
the  purposes  of  investigating  the  Holy  Land  by  employing 
competent  persons  to  examine  the  following  points: 

I.  ARCHy^iOLOGY — Jerusalem  alone  would  furnish  an  ample 

B 


i8  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'   WORK. 


field  in  this  department.  What  is  above  ground  will  be 
accurately  known  when  the  present  survey  is  completed ; 
but  below  the  surface  hardly  anything  has  yet  been  dis- 
covered. The  Tombs  of  the  Kings  on  Mount  Zion— the 
course  of  the  Tyropoeon  Valley— the  real  extent  of  the 
Temple  enclosure — the  site  of  the  Tower  of  Antonia — of 
the  Palace  of  Herod— of  Ophel — of  the  Pool  of  Bethesda — 
the  position  of  the  tcwers  of  Hippicus  and  Psephinus — the 
spring  and  conduit  of  Hezekiah — are  all  awaiting  excava- 
tion ;  and  it  is  not  too  much  to  anticipate  that  every  foot  in 
depth  of  the  "  sixty  feet  of  rubbish  "  on  which  the  city 
stands,  will  yield  interesting  and  important  materials  for  the 
Archaeologist  or  the  Numismatist. 

Beyond  the  Holy  City  the  country  is  full  of  sites  which 
cannot  fail  amply  to  repay  examination.  Of  these  a  few 
only  may  be  enumerated : — Mount  Gerizim,  possibly  the 
Moriah  of  Abraham's  sacrifice,  certainly  the  Holy  Place  of 
the  Samaritans,  containing  the  stones  which  they  allege  to 
have  been  brought  up  by  Israel  from  the  bed  of  the  Jordan 
—  the  Valley  of  Shechem,  the  earliest  setdement  of  Jacob 
in  the  Holy  Land,  with  his  Well  and  the  Tomb  of  Joseph — 
Samaria,  with  the  traditional  tombs  of  John  the  Baptist  and 
others,  and  with  the  extensive  remains  of  Herod's  edifices — 
the  splendid  Roman  cities  along  the  coast,  Caesarea  of 
Herod  and  St.  Paul — Antipatris  —  the  once  renowned 
harbours  of  Janmia  and  Gaza — the  mounds  and  other 
remains  of  Jiljilich,  probably  the  Gilgal  which  contained  the 
Great  College  of  Prophets  in  the  days  of  Elijah  and  Elisha 
— the  Fottre£-.s  and  Palace  of  Herod  at  Jebel  Fureidis— the 
Tombs  (probably  those  of  Joshua)  at  Tibneh — the  mounds 
at  Jericho — the  numerous  remains  in  the  Valley  of  the 
Jordan — Bethshean,  one  of  the  most  ancient  cities  of 
Palestine,  with  remarkable  remains  of  Roman,  and  probably 
still  earlier,  date — Jezreel,  the  capital  of  Ahab  and  Jezebel 


FOUNDATION  OF  THE  SOCIETY.  19 


—  the    Assyrian    mound,    called    Tel    es    Salahiyeh,  near 
Damascus,  ci:c.,  &c. 

2.  Manners  and  Customs. — A  work  is  urgently  required 
which  shall  do  for  the  Holy  Land  what  Mr.  Lane's 
"  Modern  Egyptians  "  has  done  for  Egypt — describe  m  a 
systematic  and  exhaustive  order  with  clear  and  exact 
minuteness  the  manners,  habits,  rites,  and  language  of  the 
present  inhabitants,  with  engravings  intended  like  his  "  not 
to  embellish  the  pages,  but  to  explain  the  text."  Many  of 
the  ancient  and  peculiar  customs  of  Palestine  are  fast 
vanishing  before  the  increasing  tide  of  Western  manners, 
and  in  a  short  time  the  exact  meaning  of  many  things  which 
find  their  correspondences  in  the  Bible  will  have  perished. 
There  are  frequent  references  to  these  things  in  the  books 
of  travellers,  and  they  have  recently  formed  the  subject 
of  more  than  one  entire  work ;  but  nothing  sufificiently 
accurate  or  systematic  had  been  done,  it  can  only  be 
accomplished  by  the  lengthened  residence  of  a  thoroughly 
competent  pers(jn. 

3.  Topography. —  Of  the  coast-line  of  Palestine  we 
now  possess  an  accurate  map  in  the  recently  finished 
Admiralty  Charts.  What  is  wanted  is  a  Survey  which  when 
we  advance  inland  should  give  the  position  of  the  principal 
points  throughout  the  country  with  equal  accuracy.  If  these 
were  fixed,  the  intermediate  spots  and  the  smaller  places 
could  be  filled  in  with  comparative  ease  and  certainty.  In 
connection  with  the  topography  is  the  accurate  ascertain- 
ment of  the  levels  of  the  various  points.  The  elevation  of 
Jerusalem  and  the  depression  of  the  Dead  Sea  are  already 
provided  for  by  the  liberality  of  the  Royal  Society  and  the 
Royal  Geographical  Society  ;*  but  the  level  of  the  Sea 
of  Galilee   (on  which  depends   our  knowledge  of  the  true 

*  See  Sir  Henry  James's  letter  to  the  Times,  Jan.  28,  1865. 

B    2 


20  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'  WORK. 


fall  of  the  Jordan)  is  still  uncertain  within  no  less  than 
300  feet — as  are  other  spots  of  almost  equal  moment. 

The  course  of  the  ancient  roads,  and  their  coincidence 
witli  the  modern  tracks,  lias  never  been  examined  with  the 
attention  it  deserves,  considering  its  importance  in  the 
investigation  of  the  history. 

The  principles  on  which  the  modern  territorial  boundaries 
are  drawn,  and  the  towns  and  villages  allotted  between  one 
district  and  another,  would  probably  throw  light  on  the 
course  of  boundaries  between  the  tribes  and  the  distribution 
of  the  villages,  which  form  the  most  puzzling  point  in  the 
otherwise  clear  specifications  of  the  Book  of  Joshua. 

4.  Geology. — Of  this  we  are  in  ignorance  of  almost  every 
detail.  The  valley  of  the  Jordan  and  basin  of  the  Dead 
Sea  is  geologically  one  of  the  most  remarkable  on  the 
earth's  surface.  To  use  the  words  of  Sir  Roderick  Mur- 
chison,  "  it  is  the  key  to  the  whole  of  the  geology  of  the 
district."  Its  Biblical  interest  is  equally  great.  To  name 
but  one  point :  the  decision  of  the  question  whether  any 
volcanic  changes  have  occurred  round  the  margin  of  the 
lake  within  the  historical  period,  may  throw  a  new  aspect 
over  the  whole  narrative  of  the  destruction  of  Sodom  and 
Gomorrah. 

5.  Natural  Sciences — Botany,  Zoology.  Meteor- 
ology.— These  are  at  present  but  very  imperfectly  known, 
while  the  recent  investigations  of  Canon  Tristram,  limited  as 
they  necessarily  were,  show  that  researches  are  likely  to 
furnish  results  of  no  common  scientific  interest.  Naturalist 
after  naturalist  will  devote  himself  for  years  to  the  forests  of 
South  America,  or  the  rivers  of  Africa,  why  should  we 
not  have  some  of  the  same  energy  and  ability  applied  to  the 
correct  description  of  tlie  lilies  and  cedars,  the  lions,  eagles, 
foxes,  and  ravens  of  the  Holy  Land  ? 

It  will  perhaps  be  said  that  many  of  the  points  above 


FOUNDATION  OF  THE  SOCIETY.  21 


enumerated  have  been  already  examined — that  Robinson, 
Stanley,  Rosen,  and  others  have  done  much  in  the  depart- 
ment of  topography — that  Hooker,  and  more  recently 
Tristram,  have  reported  on  the  botany — that  Roth  and 
Tristram  have  brought  home  shells,  fish,  birds,  and  eggs — 
that  the  researches  of  M.  Lartet  on  the  geology  of  the  Dead 
Sea,  and  those  of  the  Due  de  Luynes,  De  Vogiie,  and  De 
Saulcy  on  archaeology,  are  on  the  eve  of  publication.  This 
is  true,  but  without  intending  to  detract  from  the  usefulness 
or  the  credit  of  the  labours  of  these  eminent  men,  it  is 
sufficient  to  observe  that  their  researches  have  been  partial 
and  isolated,  and  their  results  in  too  many  cases  discrepant 
with  each  other.  What  is  now  proposed  is  an  exj^edition 
composed  of  thoroughly  competent  persons  in  each  branch 
of  research,  with  perfect  command  of  funds  and  time, 
and  with  all  possible  appliances  and  facilities,  who  should 
produce  a  report  on  Palestine  which  might  be  accepted  by 
all  parties  as  a  trustworthy  and  thoroughly  satisfactory 
document. 

It  is  hoped  that  an  arrangement  may  be  made  by  which 
Captain  Wilson  will  be  able  to  remain  for  a  few  months  in  the 
country  after  he  has  completed  the  survey  of  Jerusalem  and 
the  levelling  between  the  Mediterranean  and  the  Dead  Sea; 
and  it  will  not  be  difficult  to  find  competent  persons  to 
undertake  the  other  departments  named  above.  The 
annual  cost  of  each  investigator  may  be  taken  roughly  at 
^800  (including  both  remuneration  and  expenses). 

Her  Majesty  the  Queen  has  been  graciously  pleased  to 
become  the  Patron  of  the  Association,  and  to  contribute 
to  its  funds. 

As  will  be  presently  seen  the  Society  has  attacked 
every  one  of  those  four  divisions  in  turn,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  the  second,  which  is  now  under  consideration. 


22 


CHAPTER    II. 


CHRONICLE   OF   THE   SOCIETY, 


Cromlech  in  Galilee. 


In  the  year  1865-66,  the  first  or  preHminary  expe- 
dition was  sent  out  under  Captain  Wilson  and  Lieut. 
Anderson,  the  results  of  which  are  detailed  in  chapter 
III.  (see  p.  38). 

In  the  year  1867,  a  great  stimulus  was  given  to  the 
Society  by  the  announcement  that  excavations  were 
about  to  be  made  in  Jerusalem,  and  letters  were  written 
to  the  Times  by  Mr.  George  Grove,  which,  backed 
by  one  or  two  leading  articles,  created  for  a  short 
time  very  great  enthusiasm.  It  must  be  remembered 
that  the  founders  hoped  to  accomplish  all  their  objects 
in  a  very  few  years,  and  by  the  expenditure  of  a  com- 
jjarativcly  small  sum.  With  this  belief  the  Committee 
contemplated  a  brief  existence  and  began  by  asking 


CriRONICLE  OF  THE  SOCIETY.  23 

for  donations,  rather  than  for  annual  subscriptions, 
so  that  in  the  first  three  years  the  comparatively- 
large  sum  of  iJ^8,ooo,  which  was  raised  in  answer  to 
their  appeals,  consisted  almost  entirely  of  donations. 
The  Queen,  who  became  the  Patron  of  the  Society, 
gave  ;^i5o;  the  University  of  Oxford  ;,^5oo;  the 
University  of  Cambridge  ;^250 ;  the  British  Asso- 
ciation ;^  1 50  ;  the  Grand  Lodge  of  Freemasons  ;^  105  ; 
the  Syria  Improvement  Committee  ^250 — this  Com- 
mittee subsequently  voted  other  large  sums  ;  the  City 
of  Edinburgh  sent  up  ;^200;  Glasgow  £\Ap\  Cam- 
bridge i^ioo  ;  and  Oxford  £,<^0.  There  were  eleven 
donors  of  ;^I00,  and  a  great  many  others  in  the  first 
lists  who  gave  between  ^50  and  ^100  each.  But  as 
yet  there  were  hardly  any  annual  subscribers.  These 
had  to  be  created  when  the  need  for  them  arose, 
namely,  when  all  the  money  of  the  "  first  sprightly 
flow  "  had  been  spent. 

The  time  of  great  donations  has  never  passed  away, 
and  scarcely  a  year  passes  but  some  gift  of  a  very 
substantial  kind  rejoices  the  Committee ;  but  the 
Society  no  longer  wholly  depends  upon  them.  It 
possesses  now  a  large  body  of  subscribers  who  send 
every  year  their  half-a-guinea,  guinea,  two  guineas, 
and  sometimes  more,  to  the  Secretary.  There  are,  at 
the  present  moment,  about  3,500  of  these.  There 
have  been  times  when  there  were  more  and  no 
doubt  the   announcement    of  work    recommenced    in 


24  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'   WORK. 

Jerusalem,  or  of  Captain  Conder's  return  to  the  field, 
would  again,  and  quickly,  run  up  the  numbers.  Some 
of  these  subscribers  are  old  friends  who  have  continued 
with  us  from  the  beginning,  always  interested  in  the 
work  and  always  looking  for  the  appearance  of  the 
Quarterly  Statement  ;  others  drop  off  year  by  year 
and  are  replaced  by  new  subscribers ;  the  general 
depression  of  trade  and  the  bad  times  have  forced 
some  reluctantly  to  retire,  while  others  send  up  their 
contributions  only  when  a  party  is  in  the  field,  in  a 
belief,  which  it  seems  impossible  to  destroy,  that  when 
an  expedition  has  once  come  home  with  the  note- 
books full,  no  more  money  is  wanted.  Some,  again, 
arc  interested  more  in  one  branch  of  inquiry  than  in 
another.  Some  continually  urge  the  Committee  to 
resume  excavation  work  in  Jerusalem,  while  others 
are  eager  for  the  completion  of  the  Survey.  It  is, 
however,  to  this  great  body  of  annual  subscribers  that 
the  Committee  have  chiefly  looked  for  the  last  eighteen 
years  for  the  funds  wherewith  to  prosecute  the  work, 
and  it  will  always  be  their  endeavour  and  hope  to  be 
constantly  enlisting  new  members,  and  extending  the 
area  covered  by  their  members.  It  is  certainly  better, 
in  the  interests  of  extended  knowledge  and  of  Biblical 
research,  to  have  ten  annual  subscribers  of  a  guinea 
each  than  one  donor  of  ten  guineas,  and  the  lecturers 
and  advocates  of  the  Society  no  longer  ask  so  much 
for  special  donations   as  for  annual  subscribers.     At 


CHRONICLE  OF  THE  SOCIETY.  25 

the  same  time,  donations  are  always  most  acceptable. 
The  machinery  by  which  the  Committee  look  most 
for  extension  and  support  is  by  the  help  of  their  local 
secretaries,  by  their  lecturers,  by  their  publications, 
and  by  means  of  the  press.  The  money  spent  in 
advertising  is  a  very  small  annual  item. 

To  return,  however,  to  the  early  years. 

In  the  year  1868  it  was  found  absolutely  necessary, 
although  Mr.  Grove  had  been  joined  in  his  office  as 
hon.  secretary  by  the  Rev.  F.  W.  Holland  as  coad- 
jutor, to  have  an  office  for  head-quarters  and  as  a 
place  where  information  could  be  had  and  the  papers 
and  circulars  of  the  Society  seen,  and  a  secretary 
who  should  receive  visitors,  explain  the  nature  and 
results  of  the  work,  conduct  the  correspondence  and 
carry  on  the  regular  daily  business  of  the  Society. 
Mr,  Walter  Besant,  M.A.,  was,  in  July,  1868,  appointed 
secretary,  and  has  ever  since  continued  to  hold  the 
post. 

In  March,  1869,  it  was  resolved  to  give  the  reports 
and  letters  of  the  exploring  officers  a  more  permanent 
shape  by  issuing  them  once  a  quarter,  and  sending 
them  round  to  all  subscribers.  Before  this  a  few 
copies  only  had  been  printed,  as  the  letters  came 
home,  and  these  were  sent  round  to  such  of  the 
subscribers — a  small  selected  list — as  it  was  thought 
would  be  interested  in  them.  Many  of  them,  there- 
fore, were  not  aware  of  what  was  being  done.    In  this 


26  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'   WORK. 

way  was  first  established  the  Quarterly  Statement. 
It  beL,ran  with  an  issue  of  500  copies,  and  the  first 
number  contained,  besides  Warren's  letter  and  a 
resianc  of  work  prepared  b}^  the  secretary,  only  a 
reprint  of  two  articles,  one  by  Mr.  John  Macgregor 
from  the  Times,  and  one  b}'  Lieut.  Warren  from  the 
AtJieiiceiim.  This  Journal  is  now  the  recogniseci 
organ  for  all  papers  on  Palestine  research,  and 
penetrates  into  all  parts  of  the  world  where  the 
Bible  is  studied.  Its  circulation  naturally  varies 
with  the  number  of  the  subscribers.  At  the  present 
moment  it  is  less  than  3,000,  though  in  some  )-ears  it 
has  gone  up  to  as  many  as  5,000.  Considering  that 
it  addresses  none  but  such  as  are  serious  students  of 
the  geography,  history,  and  archaeology  of  Bible 
lands,  this  circulation  may  be  considered  very  fair. 
It  has  published,  among  its  seventeen  volumes, 
an  invaluable  collection  of  papers  on  all  subjects 
connected  with  the  Society's  operations.  Most  of 
the  important  matter  up  to  the  year  1882  has  been 
transferred  from  its  pages  to  the  Memoirs  of  the 
Survey  of  Western  Palestine,  yet  those  who  have  kept 
the  early  numbers  and  have  a  complete  collection 
may  take  note  that  an  unbroken  set  is  fast  becoming 
very  valuable.  The  Journal  contains,  in  addition  to 
the  reports  and  letters  of  the  officers,  a  great  number 
of  papers  on  various  subjects,  discussions  on  sites, 
notes  of  journeys  and  independent  research.     Nearly 


CHRONICLE  OF  THE  SOCIETY.  27 

all  these  papers  have  been  given  to  the  Committee. 
During  the  seventeen  and  a-half  years  of  its  existence, 
the  Journal  has  cost  little  more  than  ;^50  altogether 
to  writers  for  contributed  papers.  The  whole  of  the 
rest  has  been  contributed  voluntarily,  and  for  nothing, 
to  the  Committee. 

It  is  sometimes  urged  that  it  is  desirable  to  make 
the  Quarterly  Statement  more  attractive,  and  no  doubt 
larger  type  and  thicker  paper  would  make  it  look 
better,  but  the  postal  expense  would  be  doubled  or 
trebled — a  serious  consideration  when  the  distribution 
is  done  altogether  through  the  post.  As  it  is,  the 
postage  of  their  Journal  costs  the  Committee  from 
£60  to  ;^  1 00  a  year.  To  multiply  this  cost  by  three, 
which  larger  type  and  thicker  paper  would  necessitate, 
would  oblige  them  to  retrench  in  the  matter  of  illus- 
trations and  maps,  in  which  it  must  be  owned  that 
the  periodical  has  always  been  most  generous  and 
liberal.  Some  of  the  papers  published  are,  it  is  again 
complained,  dry.  It  may  be  replied,  however,  that  it 
is  difficult  to  make  meteorological  tables  and  returns, 
the  hard  facts  of  latitudes,  longitudes,  aneroid  heights, 
angles,  distances,  and  contours,  what  is  generally 
called  light  reading.  Yet  these  things,  when  they 
have  been  ascertained,  must  be  published,  otherwise 
they  might  just  as  well  never  have  been  searched  for, 
and  moreover,  it  must  be  remembered  that  they 
cease  to  be  dry  when  they  are  applied  to  the  objects 


TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'   WORK. 


for  which  they  were  investigated.  'Jhus,  to  take  a 
single  instance,  it  is  doubtless  a  dry  fact,  by  itself, 
to  read  that  Captain  Condcr  has  discovered  the  long- 
lost  city,  Kadesh  of  the  Hittites.  ]^ut  the  fact  is 
anything  but  dry  when  it  is  accompanied  and 
explained  by  the  narrative  of  the  way  in  which  this 
fact  was  arrived  at,  the  history  which  it  illustrates, 
the  Egyptian  campaign  in  which  the  city  figures,  and 
the  knowledge  that  it  has  been  rediscovered  from 
the  information  conveyed  in  an  Egyptian  monument 
3,000  years  old.  Further,  it  is  no  longer  a  mere  dry 
fact  when  we  consider  that  this  place  belonged  to  a 
very  remarkable  people,  the  extent  of  whose  country 
as  well  as  the  site  of  their  sacred  city  have  only 
recently  been  discovered,  whose  inscriptions,  only 
recently  brought  to  light,  still  await  decipherment, 
and  whose  story  is  gradually  being  wrested  from 
the  records  of  the  past.  Our  Quarterly  Statement 
is  full  of  such  instances  —  chiefly  contributed  by 
Captain  Conder,  who,  if  he  had  his  note  book  in  one 
hand,  generally  had  the  Book  of  Joshua  in  the  other, 
and  never  laid  down  a  newly  found  name,  a  newly 
discovered  ruin,  on  his  map,  without  inquiring  what 
connection,  if  any,  it  might  have  with  the  sacred 
narrative.  A  few  of  his  conclusions,  arrived  at  on  the 
field,  may  have  been  abandoned  on  more  careful  in- 
vestigation; most  of  them,  however,  have  held  their 
ground,    and    met    with   general    acceptance.     Those 


CHRONICLE  OF  THE  SOCIETY.  29 

who  have  for  fifteen  years  followed  those  voluminous 
letters,  reports,  and  papers  from  him,  which  sometimes 
nearly  filled  the  Quarterly  Statement,  will  remember 
not  only  the  brightness  and  vividness  of  his  style,  the 
picturesqueness  and  colour  of  his  descriptions,  the 
happy  touches  by  which  continually  the  country  and 
its  people  seem  to  stand  forth  revealed  to  the  readers 
who  have  never  visited  the  land,  but  also  the  unex- 
pected snatch  of  some  old  site  out  of  a  pile  of  names, 
the  quick  instinct  which  told  him  that  some  old  ruin 
consisting  of  nothing  but  broken  cisterns,  foundations 
nardly  to  be  traced,  and  fragments  of  broken  pottery, 
was  a  Biblical  site  which  had  long  been  wanted  to  fit 
into  its  place  for  the  determination  of  a  tribe  boundary, 
or  was  some  long  lost  historical  city  filled  with  sacred 
and  classical  associations. 

The  first  offices  of  the  Society  in  Pall  Mall  East 
were  retained  until  the  year  1877,  when  the  Fund  was 
turned  out  in  order  to  make  room  for  an  enlargement 
of  business  premises  ;  an  office  was  then  found  at 
Charing  Cross,  but  this  was  soon  discovered  to  be 
too  small  for  the  wants  of  the  Society,  and  in  the 
year  1880  another  move  was  made  to  Adam  Street, 
Adelphi,  where  the  Fund  is  now  established. 

In  the  year  1879  it  was  judged  prudent,  the  Asso- 
ciation having  now  become  possessed  of  a  considerable 
amount  of  property,  to  convert  it  into  a  Limited 
Liability  Company,  under    the  Acts  provided,   with 


30  TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'   WORK. 

power  to  trade,  but  not   for   profit  of  the   managers. 

This  was  done  without  altering  the  management  in 

the  least.     There  are  seven  or  eight  nominal  share- 

lioldcrs,     the     former     manner     of    government     is 

continued,    and  the    Society    has    all    the    protection 

afforded  by  the  law,  which    enables  it  to    defend,  if 

necessary,  its  copyright  in  books  and  maps  and  its 

property  in  collections  and  objects  of  art. 

Other    domestic    history    there    is    little.     Of   the 

original  Executive  Committee  first  elected  on  April 

1 8,    1866,  two   alone    remain,    Mr,   Walter   Morrison, 

who  has  been  the  hon.  treasurer  for  the  Fund  since 

July,  1867,  first  with  Mr.  John  Abel  Smith  and  then 

Mr.  Culling  Hanbury,  and  since  his  death,  alone  ;  and 

Sir  George  Grove,  the  first  hon.  secretary. 

oi,.    ..        ,       In    the    year     1870    the    Committee 
Publications  of  ■'  ' 

the  Society,  published  a  book,  edited  by  Mr.  Walter 
Morrison,  called  the  "  Recovery  of  Jerusalem,"  in 
which,  among  other  papers,  Captain  Warren  gave 
an  account  of  his  excavations.  Abcnit  two  thousand 
copies  of  this  work  were  sold  by  the  Society's 
publishers,  Messrs.  Bcntley  and  Son.  This  was 
followed  by  a  more  popular  book  called  "  Our  Work 
in  Palestine,"  written  by  the  secretary  for  the  Com- 
mittee, in  which  were  set  forth  not  only  the  nature  of 
the  excavations,  but  also  their  meaning,  and  the  chief 
arguments  in  the  controversy  of  the  sites.  Of  this 
book,  now  out  of  print,  nine  thousand  copies  were  sold. 


CHROy/CLE  OF  THE  SOCIETY.  31 

After  the  completion  of  the  survey,  Captain  Conder 
wrote  a  popular  account  of  its  methods  and  general 
results  called  "  Tent  Work  in  Palestine."  This  book 
was  very  well  received.  It  passed  from  a  library  to  a 
cheap  edition,  of  which  the  second  thousand  has 
lately  been  called  for.  It  promises,  and  deserves,  to 
remain  a  popular  and  standard  work  on  the  Holy 
Land.  On  his  return  from  the  interrupted  eastern 
survey,  Captain  Conder  wrote  another  book  called 
"  Heth  and  Moab."  In  this  work,  which  has  also 
passed  into  a  cheap  edition,  the  author  relates  the 
story  of  his  discovery  of  the  Hittite  Kadesh,  and  of 
his  raid  into  the  eastern  country. 

In  the  years  1881-85  the  Committee  published,  for  a 
limited  number  of  subscribers,  their  great  work  called 
the  "  Survey  of  Western  Palestine."  This  work  is  by 
far  the  most  important  they  have  as  yet  issued  ;  it  is, 
in  fact,  the  most  important  zvork  {not  excepting  even 
Robinson's)  on  the  Holy  Land  that  has  ever  been  given 
to  the  luorld ;  and  the  most  importajit  contribution  to 
the  illustration  of  the  Bible  since  its  translation  into  the 
vulgar  tongue.     It  contains  : — 

I.  The  Memoirs  :  with  all  the  drawings,  plans, 
sketches  and  notes  made  by  the  officers, 
supplemented  by  such  other  information  as 
could  be  got  from  other  recent  travellers  {e.g. 
under  the  word  "  Tyre  "  will  be  found  a  short 
history  of  the  city,  with  an  account  of  Rcnan's 


32  TlVENTy-ONE  YEARS'  WORK. 

excavations,  and,  in  an  appendix,  Captain 
Condor's  later  researches).  These  volumes 
arc  illustrated  by  thousands  of  drawings, 
plans,  maps,  and  sketches  of  ruins,  tombs, 
&c.,  made  by  Captain  Conder  and  Captain 
Kitchener  expressly  for  the  work. 

2.  The    Name    Lists  :    containing    over    10,000 

names  collected  during  the  Survey.  These 
were  transliterated  by  Captain  Conder,  and 
translated  by  the  late  Prof  Palmer. 

3.  Special     Papers :    being    a     reproduction     of 

papers  which  have  already  appeared  in  the 
Quarterly  Statement. 

4.  Flora  and  Fauna  of  Palestine:  with  illustrations, 

hand-coloured,  by  Rev.  Canon  Tristram. 

5.  Jerusalem.       An  account  of  all  that  has  been 

done  in  the  city  in  excavation  and  research, 
from  1865  to  1882,  by  Major-Gen.  Sir  Charles 
Warren,  G.C.B.,  F.R.S.,  R.E.,  and  Captain 
Conder,  R.E.,  together  with  a  portfolio  of  60 
sheets  of  plans  and  drawings. 

6.  To  these  volumes  has    been    recently    added 

Prof  Hull's  "Geology  of  Palestine,"  a  scien- 
tific memoir  embodying  his  observations  and 
discoveries  during  his  expedition  in  1884-85. 
At  the  same  time,  and  forming  part  of  the  same 
work,  were  produced   the   maps  issued   by  the  Com- 
mittee, namely :    the    Great  ]\Iap  of  Western   Pales- 


CHRONICLE  OF  THE  SOCIETY. 


tine  in  26  sheets  ;  the  Reduced  Map  in  six  sheets  ; 
the  same  with  the  Water  Basins  laid  down  ;  the 
Old  Testament  Map  of  Western  Palestine,  and  the 
New  Testament  Map.  As  regards  the  two  latter 
they  will  shortly  be  withdrawn  and  replaced  by 
others  showing  both  sides  of  the  Jordan,  including 
so  much  of  the  Eastern  survey  as  is  yet  completed ; 
the  tribe  boundaries  and  identifications  will  be 
superintended  by  Sir  Charles  Wilson  and  Captain 
Conder. 

The  whole  of  this  work  has  been  produced  in  a 
manner  worthy  of  its  contents,  every  drawing  that 
the  officers  gave  in  has  been  published,  with  every 
note  of  their  memoirs.  The  maps  are  in  the  best 
style,  the  reduced  map  being  engraved  on  copper. 
The  cost  of  the  whole  work,  including  everything,  has 
been  no  less  than  ^10,971.  Of  this  large  sum,  ^^7,301 
has  been  received  from  the  subscribers  to  the  whole 
work,  and  by  sale  of  the  maps  separately,  and  when 
the  remaining  copies  are  taken  up  and  the  maps 
have  been  before  the  public  a  little  longer,  there  will 
certainly  be  no  loss  to  record  at  all. 

In  the  year  1885  was  published  Prof  Hull's 
popular  account  of  the  geological  expedition,  in  a 
volume  called  "  Mount  Seir." 

The  MSS.  in  the  hands  of  the  Committee  and 
awaiting  publication  will  be  spoken  of  presently. 

Other  books,  published  on  kindred  topics,  though 


34  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'  WORK. 

not  issued  by  the  Society,  must  also  be  noted,  as 
showing  the  increased  activity  and  interest  in  the 
subject.  Among  them  are  Warren's  "  Underground 
Jerusalem,"  and  his  "  Temple  or  the  Tomb  "  ;  Palmer's 
"  Desert  of  the  Exodus "  ;  Tristram's  "  Land  of 
Moab  "  ;  Ginsburg's  "  Moabite  Stone  "  ;  Sir  Richard 
Burton's  "  Unexplored  Syria  "  ;  Fergusson's  "  Tem- 
ples of  the  Jews  "  ;  Condcr's  "  Handbook  to  the 
Bible,"  and  his  primer  of  '"Bible  Geography"  ;  Besant 
and  Palmer's  "  History  of  Jerusalem  "  ;  Lady  Burton's 
"  Inner  Life  of  Syria";  Laurence  Oliphant's  "Land 
of  Gilead";  Merrill's  "Eastern  Palestine";  Dr. 
Clay  Trumbull's  "  Kadesh  Barnea  "  ;  Conder's  "  Judas 
Maccabaeus  "  ;  Wright's  "  Empire  of  the  Hittites"  ; 
Drake's  "  Life  and  Literary  Remains  ; "  the  "  Trans- 
actions of  the  Society  of  Biblical  Archaeology  "  ;  the 
books  of  the  Societe  de  I'Orient  Latin ;  Tobler's 
learned  works  ;  the  "  Records  of  the  Past "  ;  the 
publications  of  the  Palestine  Pilgrims'  Text  Society  ; 
the  Transactions  of  the  American,  German,  and 
Russian  Palestine  Societies  ;  and  many  others. 

-  It    is    impossible   to    estimate    by    any 

Exploration,  money  standard  the  value  of  the  Society's 
work,  for  so  far,  and  so  far  only,  as  it  is  solid  and 
true,  is  it  valuable,  and  all  that  in  it  is  solid  and 
true  is  unspeakably  valuable. 

The   whole    amount   of    money    received    by   the 


CHRONICLE  OF  THE  SOCIETY. 


35 


Society  from  June,  1865  to  December  31st,  1885,  has 
been  as  follows  : — 

From  subscriptions  and  don; 

Proceeds  of  lectures 

Proceeds  of  publications 

Legacies  ... 

Maps  and  memoirs* 

Loan 

;^66,38o  17 

And  the  expenditure  has  been  as  follows : — 
On  exploration    ...  ...  ...  ^35,o8i    19 


)ns  , 

^50,902 

18 

8 

... 

2,682 

8 

5 

... 

1,825 

I 

9 

2,819 

0 

0 

7,301 

8 

6 

... 

850 

0 

0 

Returned  to  subscribers  in  pub- 


lications 

..        8,224 

17 

9 

Maps  and  memoirs* 

..       10,971 

5 

9 

Management 

..       11,424 

0 

0 

5 

Expended  on  exhibitionsf 

347 

9 

7 

Balance    ...          

331 

I 

I 

;^66,38o  17     4 

In  other  words,  out  of  a  total  expenditure  of 
;^66,049  i^-^-  3^-  spread  over  21  years,  the  Committee 
have  spent : — 

On  exploration  ...  ...     53  per  cent. 

*  This  includes  the  money  spent  and  received  on  account  of  the 
"  Survey  of  Western  Palestine,"  the  memoir!:  with  their  ilkistrations, 
the  maps,  and  ail  tlie  charges  belonging  to  the  publication  of  them. 

t  The  Society  has  held  two  Exhibitions  in  London  and  one  in 
Liverpool, 

C    2 


36  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'  WORK. 

On  management         ...         ...      17  per  cent. 

Returned    to    subscribers    in 

form  of  printed  matter  ...      13  per  cent, 
and  on  maps  and  memoirs,  two-thirds  of  which  have 
already  been  recovered  by  sales,  while  all  the  rest  will 
also  be  recovered,  a  proportion  of  17  per  cent. 

The  present  assets  of  the  Society  are  ( i )  the  balance 
at  the  bank  amounting  to  a  few  hundreds  ;  (2)  its 
books,  copyrights,  photographs  and  maps ;  (3)  its 
collections  now  at  South  Kensington,  and  (4)  its 
library,  collections  and  furniture  at  the  central  office. 
The  liabilities  are  a  current  printer's  bill  of  about 
^400,  and  a  debt  of  ;i^850  for  an  unpaid  loan. 

The  collections  could,  if  necessary,  be  sold  for  a 
very  large  sum  of  money.  They  include  sarcophagi, 
ancient  lamps,  inscriptions,  Jewish  pottery,  carvings, 
capitals,  coins,  objects  of  all  kinds  found  in  the  ex- 
cavations, models  of  Jerusalem  and  Sinai,  collections 
of  birds,  and  many  other  things.  It  is  not  in- 
tended, however,  either  to  sell  or  to  disperse  this 
unique  and  valuable  museum,  but  to  keep  the  things 
together,  and  to  make  them  the  nucleus  of  the 
great  Biblical  Museum  which  the  Society  proposes 
to  form. 

The  present  General  Committee  of  a  hundred  and 
thirty  gentlemen  includes  in  its  list,  it  is  gratifying 
to  state,  all  the  survivors  of  the  original  members. 
In     the    whole    twenty-one    years'    history    of    the 


CHRONICLE  OF  THE  SOCIETY.  37 

Society  there  has  been  recorded  but  one  secession 
from  the  Committee:  that  of  a  member  who  withdrew 
his  name,  but  without  assigning  any  reason.  The 
chairman  of  the  Executive  Committee,  which  meets 
twice  every  m.onth,  and  oftener  if  necessary,  is 
Mr.  James  Glaisher,  F.R.S.,  and  every  information 
may  be  obtained,  and  the  publications  seen  at  the 
Society's  offices,  i,  Adam  Street,  Adelphi. 


38 


CHAPTER  III. 


THE   FIRST   EXPEDITION. 


On  base  of  column,  Nebratein, 

The  first  expedition  sent  out  by  the  Committee 
was  in  November,  1865,  under  Captain  C.  W.  (now 
Col.  Sir  Charles)  Wilson,  R.E.,  who  was  accompanied 
by  Lieut.  Anderson,  R.E.  The  general  objects 
of  the  expedition  were  to  fix,  in  particular,  spots  for 
further  investigation,  and  to  collect  whatever  infor- 
mation might  be  possible  which  would  throw  light 
on  any  of  the  points  mentioned  in  the  original 
prospectus  of  the  Society,  The  expedition  was  in 
the  field  from  December,  1865,  to  May,  1866,  The 
following  is  the  report  of  the  work  done,  drawn  up, 
from  Captain  Wilson's  letters,  by  a  sub-committee, 
appointed  for  the  purpose,  consisting   of  the  Arch- 


nmmMn    v)i}i)?>Hffn>}„>f)„tT^ 


THE  FIRST  EXPEDITION.  39 

bishop    of    York,    the    Dean    of    Westminster,    and 
Professor  Owen : — 

1.  Topography. — By  accurate  observations  for  time  and 
latitude,  made  at  forty-nine  separate  points  between 
Beyrout  and  Hebron,  and  by  a  hne  of  azimuths  carried 
through  the  country  from  Banias  to  Jerusalem,  a  series  of 
detailed  maps  has  been  formed,  on  the  scale  of  one  mile  to 
an  inch  (the  scale  of  the  English  Ordnance  Survey),  of  the 
whole  backbone  of  the  country,  from  north  to  south, 
including  the  lake  of  Genesareth  and  all  the  watercourses 
descending  to  its  western  shores. 

^  i  „  »  Two  debated   questions  have   been 

YAR  UN  ^ 

PLAN  OF  CHURCH  definitely  settled:  the  confluence  of 
the  Jabbok  (Wady  Zerka)  with  the 
Jordan,  and  the  course  of  the  Wady 
Surar.  The  nature  of  the  country, 
especially  in  the  south,  is  very  un- 
favourable for  rapid  reconnaissance,  as 
the  numerous  watercourses  are  so  narrow,  and  have  such 
tortuous  courses,  that  it  is  unsafe  to  trust  the  eye,  and  lay 
anything  down  that  has  not  actually  been  visited.  Most 
of  the  errors  in  the  existing  maps  seem  to  have  arisen  in 
this  way.  To  remedy  this  defect  has  been  the  aim  of 
the  present  map,  and  must  be  the  aim  of  any  additions 
to  it  hereafter. 

2.  Archeology. — Materials  have  been  collected  for  making 
about  fifty  plans,  with  detailed  drawings,  of  churches,  syna- 
gogues, mosques,  temples,  tombs,  tScc,  amongst  which  are 
the  plans  of  the  cities  of  Beisan,  Sebastiyeh,  and  Coesarea  ; 
of  the  Holy  Place  of  the  Samaritans,  and  the  ruined 
Church  of  Justinian,  on  the  summit  of  Mount  Gerizim  ; 
of  ancient  churches  at  Baalbek,  Yarun,  Sebastiyeh,  Beitin, 
Bireh,  Cssarea,  I.ydda,  Beit  Jibrin,  Kuryet-el-Enab,  and 
Jerusalem ;    of  seven    Jewish  synagogues ;    of  the    Grand 


a  □    □  B 


o  o  □  a  □ 


\Jit}}}>!}!}l}>}}>}»}}.}nJ. 


O     ro  ^O  30  »0  SOfCLT 


40 


TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'  WORK. 


Mosque  at  Damascus,  of  a  mosque  at  Nablus ;  of  Temples 
at  Deirel-Kalah,  Mejdel-Anjar,  and  Kedes,  and  of  numerous 
tombs  in  various  ])art^  r^'i  the  country. 


Columbaria  near  Beit  Jibrin 

Inscriptions  were  found  and 
copied  at  the  Nahr  el-Kelb,  Uer 
el-Kalah,    Masi,     Damascus,    Tel 


M  E 1 r6n 

PLAN  OF  A  TOMB 


Salhiyeh,       Harran,      el-Awamid,  (^p^-nL 
Banias,  Kedes,  Yarun,  Nehratein,   ■''■■■■■v^ 
Kefr  Birim,  Kasyun,  and  Nablus;     J: 
several  of  these  are  new,  two  of 
them    in    the    Hebrew   character, 
and    others    in     the    Samaritan. 
Sfjueezes  were  taken  of  the   most 


1 


* 


^x^^ 

^■r-*^ 


tH 


important,  including    the  tablets  of  Sennacherib  at   Nahr 


•■J 


THE  FIRST  EXPEDITION. 


41 


el-Kelb.  The  Hebrew  and  Samaritan  inscriptions  have  been 
referred  to  Mr.  Deutsch,  of  the  British  Museum,  who  has 
kindly  undertaken  to  report  upon  their  contents,  age,  &c. 

The  most  mteresting  remains  are 
those  of  the  ancient  synagogues  at 
Tel  Hum,  Irbid,  Kefr  Birim,  &c. 
To  these  attention  has  been  called 
by  Dr.  Robinson  m  his  "  Later 
Biblical  Researches."  But  the 
present  expedition  has  furnished 
the  first  complete  account  of  their 
arrangement  and  construction. 
They  all  lie  north  and  south,  have 
three  gateways  in  the  southern  end, 


'*Axt?iarC»MOCi 


MEIRON 


the  interior  divided  into  five  aisles 
by  four  rows  of  columns,  and  the 

two  northern  corners  formed  by  4,1/^6!  HAOJAlOH AN  in 
double  engaged  columns.  The  OYKTCOPAA'HT-HCAICI 
style  of  decoration  does  not  always  MAXOlOrONOC 

appear  to  have  been  the  same.     At  From  iJanias. 

Tel  Hum  (the  strongest  claimant  for  the  '^ite  of  Caper- 
naum) and  Kerazeh  (Chorazin)  Corinthian  svmagogue  at 
capitals  were  found  ;  at  Irbid  a  mixture  of 
Corinthian  and  Ionic ;  whilst  Kefr  Birim, 
Meiron,  and  Um  el-Amud  have  capitals 
of  a  peculiar  character.  The  faces  of  the 
lintels  over  the  gateways  are  usually  orna- 
mented with  some  device ;  at  Nebratein 
there  is  an  inscription  and  representation 
of  the  seven-branched  candlestick  ;  at  Kefr 
Birim  the  ornament  appears  to  have  been  intended  for 
the  Paschal  lamb  ;  and  at  Tel  Hum  there  are  the 
pot  of  manna  and  lamb.  A  scroll  of  vine  leaves  with 
bunches  of  grapes  is  one  of  the  most  frequent  ornaments. 


f^ 


□  Q  c:  Q 
0  Q  ,:.  li 
B  r;  ::■  Q 


c  i;i 


O    10  to  30  *0  XfCCl 


42 


TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'    WORK. 


The  position  of  Choraziii  at  Kerazeh,  a  couple  of  miles 
north  of  Tel  Hum — which  had  been  indicated  by  the  Rev. 


12' 

From  Nebratein 


3'2' 

From  Kerazeh, 


G.  Williams,  in  1842 — now  seems  to  be  fixed  with  tolerable 
certainty,  by  the  presence  of  extensive  remains,  including 
those  of  a  synagogue. 


THE  FIRST  EXPEDITION. 


43 


The  ancient  system  of  irrigating  the  plain  of  Genesareth 
can  still  be  traced,  and  may  help  to  throw  light  on  the  site 


of  Capernaum.  From  the  streams  which  descend  the  three 
Wadys  of  Hammam,  Rubadiyeh  and  Amud,  water  was 
carried  to  the  right  and  left  by  small  aqueducts,  and  beyond 
these  towards  the  north-east  the  plain  was  watered  by  the 


'^  TWENTY-ONE    YEARS'   WORK. 

spring  of  Tabighah.  The  Round  Fountain  seems  to  have 
irrigated  a  comparatively  small  extent  of  ground  between 
Wady  Rubadiyeh  and  Wady  Hani  mam,  the  aqueducts  from 
both  of  which  can  be  traced  nearly  up  to  their  sources,  the 
latter  one  being  still  in  use.  By  carefully  using  the  water 
derived  from  these  sources  the  entire  plain  was  perfectly 
irrigated,  and  from  the  richness  of  its  soil  must  have  been  ot 
great  fertility.  Neither  Ain  et-Tin  nor  the  Round  Fountain 
answer  to  the  account  given  by  Josephus  of  the  Fountain  of 
Kepharnome ;  they  are  too  small,  and  hardly  come  into 
the  scheme  of  irrigation — the  former  not  at  all ;  but, 
supposing  it  to  be  Ain  Tabighah,  his  allusion  is  at  once 
explained  by  the  copiousness  of  the  supply,  and  the 
excavated  channel  through  the  rock  above  Khan  Minyeh, 
by  which  tlie  water  was  carried  into  the  plain ;  the 
fertilizing  powers  of  the  fountain  are  still  attended  by  the 
rank  vegetation  around  the  mills,  more  noticeable  there 
than  at  any  other  point  of  the  lake. 

Near  the  mouth  of  Wady  Semakh,  on  the  eastern  shore 
of  the  lake,  some  ruins  called  Khersa  were  visited,  possibly 
those  of  the  ancient  Gergasa,  and  between  this  and  Wady 
Fik  (opposite  Tiberias)  appears  to  have  been  the  scene  of 
the  destruction  of  the  herd  of  swine  ;  indeed  no  other  point 
on  that  side  of  the  lake  is  so  suitable.  From  the  eastern 
plateau  the  ground  slopes  steeply,  in  a  few  places  almost 
])recipiiously,  down  to  the  level  of  the  lake,  leaving  a 
margin  of  fertile  land  from  half  a  mile  to  a  mile  broad 
between  the  base  of  the  hills  and  the  water  ;  but  at  this 
particular  point,  and  only  at  this,  a  spur  runs  out  to  the 
shore,  there  is  no  "  cliff,"  but  a  slope  sufficiently  steep  to 
fulfil  the  requirements  of  the  Bible  narrative. 

Excavations  were  made  in  three  places  in  the  mound  of 
Tel  Salhiyeh,  apparently  an  Assyrian  monument,  near 
Damascus,  during  wliich  the  sculjjtural  slab  mentioned  in 


.    THE  FIRST  EXPEDITION.  45 

Porter's  "  Five  Years  in  Damascus "  was  re-discovered. 
Owing  to  the  badness  of  the  weather  it  was  not  advisable  to 
persevere  with  the  exploration  at  that  time  ;  but  it  has  been 
since  resumed  by  Mr.  Rogers,  Her  Majesty's  Consul  at 
Damascus,  to  whom  a  sum  oi  j(^^o  has  been  voted  by  the 
Committee  for  that  special  object. 

Besides  determining  the  general  form  of  the  authentic 
synagogues,  the  excavations  made  at  Kedes  confirm  the 
conjecture  that  the  supposed  synagogue  there  was  a  Greek 
temple,  of  about  the  same  age  as  those  at  Baalbek.  At 
Jerusalem,  the  gate  Gennath,  so-called,  was  found  to  be  of 
comparatively  modern  construction  ;  and  the  continuation 
of  the  passage  from  the  Bab  el-Burak  of  the  Haram,  was 
discovered  ;  the  vault  is  of  massive,  well-built  masonry,  and 
there  seems  no  reason  to  doubt  that  it  is  one  of  the  original 
entrances  to  the  Herodian  Temple. 

On  Mount  Gerizim  numerous  excavations  were  made, 
under  the  direction  of  Lieutenant  Anderson.  Within  the 
ruin  known  as  the  "  Castle,"  the  foundations  of  an  octagonal 
church  were  laid  bare,  probably  the  one  known  to  have 
been  built  there  by  Justinian.  On  the  eastern  side  of 
the  church  is  an  apse,  on  the  northern  side  the  main 
entrance,  and  on  each  of  the  others  doors  leading  to  small 
side  chapels.  In  the  interior  are  the  piers  of  a  smaller 
octagon,  apparently  intended  to  carry  a  dome.  The  church 
and  castle  were  found  to  be  built  on  a  rough  platform  of 
large  stones  laid  together  without  mortar,  and  of  this — ■ 
which  may  possibly  be  that  on  which  the  Samaritan  Temple 
stood — the  so-called  "  twelve  stones  "  form  a  portion.  No 
trace  of  large  foundations  could  be  found  on  the  southern 
portion  of  the  small  plateau  on  which  the  castle  stands. 
Close  to  the  Holy  Rock  of  the  Samaritans  a  number  ot 
human  remains  were  dug  up,  but  no  clue  could  be  obtained 
to  their  age  or  nationality. 


46 


TWENTY-ONE    YEARS'   WORK. 


3.  Photographs. — A  series  of  photographs  (9x6),  166  in 
number,  have  been  taken,  the  majority  for  the  first  time. 
They  comprise  views  of  sites,  details  of  architecture,  inscrip- 


THE  FIRST   EXPEDITION. 


47 


tions,  &c.,  the  Samaritan   Pentateuch,  and  a  few   natural 
objects. 

The  most  important  feature  of  this  expedition  has 
proved  to  be  the  examination  of  the  synagogues,  and 
especially  the  synagogue  of  Tel  Hum.  The  "two 
debated  questions  "  which  were  then  settled  are  illus- 
trative of  the  then  condition  of  Palestine  geography. 
If  such  a  question  or  any  other  were  now  to  arise 
in  considering  a  passage  of  the  Bible  the  Great 
Survey  Map  would  at  once  settle  the  matter  just  as  a 
reference  to  a  dictionary  settles  the  spelling  of  a 
word.  But  so  rich  a  harvest  of  work  from  so  short  an 
expedition  was  wholly  unexpected  and  was  received 
with  great  satisfaction. 

A  fuller  paper  on  the  Synagogues 
of  Galilee,  was  written  by  Captain 
Wilson,  and  published  originally  in 
the  second  number  of  the  Quarterly 
Statement^  in  the  year  1869.  It 
was  republished  with  a  paper  by 
Captain  Kitchener,  in  the  volume  of  the  "  Survey  of 
Western  Palestine,"  called  "  Special  Papers." 


^REAT     SYNAGOGUE    AT 
KEFR    BIR'iM. 


o  a  a  C3  D  a 

O    10  ^O  30  ^O   5VF€£r 


48 


CHAPTER  IV. 


TIIF.    EXCAVATIONS   AT   JERUSALEM. 


It  was  in  IMaj',  1867,  that  Lieutenant  Warren,  R.F.., 
left  England,  charged  with  the  duty  of  conducting 
excava<-ions  at  Jerusalem,  in  the  hope  of  settling  once 


THE  EXCA  VA  TIONS  A  T  JERUSALEM.  49 

for    all    the  controversies    on  the    Holy  sites.     The 
questions  under  dispute  were  chiefly  these  : — 

1.  The  site  of  the  Temple  within  the  walls  of  the 

enclosure,  known  as  the  Haram  esh  Sherif. 

2.  The    site    of    Constantine's    Church    of    the 

Anastasis,  with  which  was  involved  the  site, 
true  and  traditional,  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre. 

3.  The  course  of  the  First,   Second,   and  Third 

Wall,  which  involved  the  site  of  the  towers 
of  Hippicus,  Phasaelus,  Mariamne,  and 
Psephinus.  The  course  of  the  Second  Wall 
is  also  closely  connected  with  the  site  of  the 
Holy  Sepulchre. 
"  4.  The  Gates  of  the  Walls. 

5.  The  date  of  the  erection  of  the  Dome  of  the 

Rock. 

6.  The  position  of  the  tower  of  Antonia,  the  Gate 

Beautiful,  the  course  of  the  Tyropoeon  valley, 
Millo,  Acra,  the  Pool  of  Bethesda,  the  Gate 
Gennath,  and  many  other  places. 
As  regards  the  controversialists,  they    have    been 
so  numerous  that  at  least   as   many   as  sixteen  dif- 
ferent reconstructions  of  the  ancient  city  have   been 
proposed.       Robinson,    who    began     first    to    doubt 
the    traditional  sites,   argued   that   the   Second    Wail 
must    have    included    the    present    Church    of    the 
Holy  Sepulchre,  which,  therefore,  could  not  be  built 

on    the   true  site.      Fergusson,    who   first    advanced 

D 


so  rWENTY-ONE    YEARS'  fVOA'/T. 

his  theories  in  the  }'ear  1847,  and  subsequently  was 
permitted  to  ad\ocate  them  in  "Smith's  Dictionary  of 
the  Bible,"  in  1865,  contended  that  the  Dome  of  the 
Rock  in  the  Temple  enclosure  is  nothing  else  than 
Constantine's  Basilica,  that  the  cave  which  it  covers  is 
the  Holy  Sepulchre  itself,  that  the  present  traditional 
site  was  fraudulently  assumed  by  the  monks,  in  order 
to  keep  up  the  flow  of  pilgrims;  and  that  the  Temple 
itself  was  built  in  the  south-west  corner  of  the  Haram 
Area.  He  was  followed  in  the  main,  though  not 
altogether,  by  Lewin,  Thrupp,  and  others,  while  his 
principal  opponents  were  at  that  time  Prof.  Willis, 
George  Williams,  and  Finlay. 

The    arguments  used   for  and  against  the  various 
theories  were  based  upon  the  following  authorities  : — 

1.  The  topographical  references  scattered  about 

in  the  Bible. 

2.  The  descriptions  of  Josephus. 

3.  The  Rabbinical  writings. 

4.  The  notices  of  the  city  found  in  other  ancient 

authors,  and  especially  those  of  the  early 
Christian  writers,  such  as  Jerome,  Eusebius, 
Cyril,  and  Origen. 

5.  Ecclesiastical  history. 

6.  The  travels  of  early  pilgrims. 

7.  The  lie  of  the  ground. 

8.  The  architectural  evidence. 
<).  Tradition. 


THE  EXCAVATIONS  AT  JERUSALEM.  51 

As  regards  the  first  six  sources  of  information,  the 
writers  of  1865  were  in  just  as  good  a  position  as  those 
of  the  present  year,  except  in  one  or  two  particulars. 
Thus,  the  list  of  early  pilgrims  has  been  increased  by 
the  discovery  of  another  MS.  or  two,  and  a  better 
text  is  now  accessible.  There  was  not,  probably,  living 
then,  nor  is  there  living  now,  any  one  man,  if  we  may 
except  Dr.  Robinson,  who  had  gone  through  the  long 
collection  of  Byzantine  writings  in  order  to  extract 
the  references  to  Jerusalem  and  the  Holy  Land, 
though  Williams  quotes  a  few  passages — he  does 
not  say  whether  he  found  them  himself — from 
Cedrenus  and  others.  No  one  then — again  excepting 
Robinson — had  systematically  read  and  examined 
the  early  Arabic  travellers  and  historians,  though 
quotations  were  made  by  Williams  in  his  "  Holy 
City"  from  one  or  two  and  those  at  second  hand. 
This  work  has  now  been  undertaken  by  the  Palestine 
Pilgrims'  Text  Society,  a  branch  of  the  Fund. 
Twenty  years  ago  it  was  customary  to  sneer  at 
the  exaggerations  of  Josephus.  Recent  dis- 
coveries have,  however,  proved  that  in  some 
cases  at  least  he  is  very  near  the  truth.  And 
there  was  so  general  a  disposition  to  decry  the 
weight  of  Rabbinical  authority,  that,  in  the  Jeru- 
salem article  of  Smith's  Bible  Dictionary,  it  is 
laid  down  as  a  general  proposition  that  the  autho- 
rity of  the  Rabbis  "  is  so  questionable  that  it  is  of 

D  2 


52  TWENTY-ONE    YEARS'   WORK. 

the  least  possible  consequence  what  they  said  or 
meant."  It  is  now,  however,  admitted,  and  has 
been  proved  in  a  very  remarkable  paper  lately 
published  in  the  Journal  of  the  Society,  that  the  state- 
ments of  the  Rabbis,  so  far  from  being  of  no  con- 
sequence, are  valuable  and  important  to  the  highest 
degree. 

Next,  as  regards  the  lie  of  the  ground.  That  was 
everywhere  unknown.  Wilson  in  his  tentative  exca- 
vations had  clearly  proved  that  the  modern  city  stands 
upon  many  feet  of  rubbish :  George  Williams  speaks 
of  twenty  feet  of  rubbish  :  the  original  Prospectus 
speaks  of  sixty  feet :  and  everybody  knew  that  there 
were  vast  quantities  of  debris  lying  outside  the  city 
walls,  but  no  one  knew  the  depth  of  this  rubbish. 
The  course  of  the  Tyropoeon  valley,  on  which  the 
course  of  the  Second  Wall  depends,  was  unknown, 
while  Fergusson,  in  his  Jerusalem  article,  states 
positively,  as  if  it  was  a  well-known  and  indisputable 
fact,  that  all  along  the  south  wall  of  the  Temple  the 
rock  Avas  everywhere  visible ;  the  truth,  as  now 
known,  being  that  it  is  visible  at  one  point  only, 
being  buried  a  hundred  feet  deep  at  the  two 
extremities — east  and  west.  Also  in  placing  the 
Temple  in  the  south-west  corner  of  the  Haram  Area, 
Fergusson,  thinking  that  it  was  a  level  area,  placed  it 
upon  a  slope  of  one  in  five,  unless,  as  has  been  con- 
jectured, a  cliff  existed  at  this  spot. 


THE  EXCA  VA  TlOyS  A  T  JERUSALEM.  53 

As  regards  the  architectural  argument,  Fergusson's 
theory  may  be  thus  briefly  stated  : — 

1.  The  architecture  of  the  Dome  of  the  Rock  is 

Byzantine,  and  is  of  the  time  of  Constantine, 

2.  Therefore   it    must    be    the    BasiHca   of    the 

Anastasis. 

3.  Therefore  it  covers   the  true  site  of  the  Holy 

Sepulchre,  and  therefore  the  present  tradi- 
tional site  must  be  a  forgery  of  the  monks. 

4.  Therefore  this    spot  must  have    been  within 

the  walls  of  the  city, 

5.  Therefore  the  Temple  must  necessarily  have 

been  in  the  south-west  corner,  because  there 
is  no  other  place  in  which  to  put  it. 

6.  Therefore  the  present  east  wall  of  the  Haram 

must  have  been  part  of  the  Third  Wall  of 

the  City. 
De  Vogiie,  on  the  other  hand,  declared  his  opinion 
that  the  Dome  of  the  Rock  was  really  and  truly  built, 
as  all  the  Arab  historians  agree  in  stating,  and  the 
inscription  within  it  declares,  by  Abd  el  Melek  ;  but 
that  it  was  constructed  for  him  by  Byzantine  architects, 
the  Arabs  themselves  being  incapable  of  any  archi- 
tecture. De  Vogiie  was  supported  in  this  opinion  by 
the  late  Professor  Willis,  an  architectural  authority  of 
the  highest  rank.  It  remains  to  be  seen  what  view 
will  be  taken  of  the  subject  by  future  writers. 

As  for  the  value  of  tradition,  there  are  some  who 


54 


TWENTY-ONE    YEARS'   WORK. 


place  the  highest  value  on  tradition  when  it  seems  to 
be  uninterrupted.  Now  the  site  fixed  upon  by  Constan- 
tine's  advisers,  as  that  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre,  does 
seem,  to  many  of  those  who  have  examined  into  the 
question,  determined  by  an  unbroken  catena  of  evi- 
dence extending  from  the  middle  of  the  fourth  century 
until  the  present  day.  Unfortunately,  however,  there 
is  not  a  single  whisper  of  tradition  concerning  that 
site  before  the  fourth  century. 

Captain  Conder,  however,  has  laid  down  an  axiom 
on  tradition,  the  value  of  which  was  not  recognised 
twenty  years  ago.  It  is  this,  that  tuhen  the  traditions 
of  Jezv,  Cliristimi,  and  Moslem  unite  there  is  strong 
presumption  for  believing  that  they  are  right. 

No  one  doubts,  for 
instance,  the  site  of 
Hebron,  Rachel's 

Tomb,  and  Jacob's  Well, 
while  only  the  Greek 
Christians  believe  in  the 
yearly  miracle  of  the 
Holy  Fire,  and  the  hun- 
dred and  one  legends 
with  which  they  have 
surrounded  the  Holy  places, 

Warren's  excavations  were  continued  from  February, 
1867  till  April,  1870,  a  period  of  about  three  years. 
Since  the  year  1870  a  good  deal  of  work  has  been 


THE  EXCA  VA  TIONS  A  7  JER  USALEM.  55 

done  by  Captain  Conder,  M.  Clermont  Ganneau,  Herr 
Conrad  Schick,  Herr  Guthe  (for  the  German  Society), 
Dr.  Chaplin,  and  the  Russians.  The  whole  of  this 
work  has  now  been  summarized  and  arranged  by 
Sir  Charles  Warren  and  Captain  Conder,  and  pub- 
lished in  the  volume  entitled  "Jerusalem,"  forming 
part  of  the  great  work,  "  The  Survey  of  Western 
Palestine."  This  book  is  a  great  deal  more  than  a 
description  of  the  excavations  ;  it  is  the  most  com- 
prehensive and  complete  work  on  the  Holy  City 
ever  published  ;  it  contains  a  chronological  synopsis 
of  the  history  of  the  city ;  an  account  of  all  its 
architectural  monuments,  with  the  earliest  accounts 
of  the  buildings,  a  statement  of  the  controversy  con- 
cerning the  disputed  sites  ;  and  a  complete  account 
of  the  excavations  and  their  results,  with  all  the 
work  that  has  been  carried  on  in  the  city  since 
Warren's  time.  The  volume  is  accompanied  by  a 
portfolio  containing  sixty  sheets  of  drawings  and 
plans  most  of  which  have  never  before  appeared.  It 
is  impossible  here  to  do  more  than  recapitulate  the 
principal  results  of  excavations  which  are  without 
parallel  for  the  difficulties  presented,  and  the  courage 
displayed  in  overcoming  them. 

As  regards  the  walls  of  the  Temple  Area,  Warren 
proved  that  this  colossal  work  is  covered  up  with 
di'brts  in  some  places  to  a  depth  of  100  feet,  and 
in  one  place  to  a  depth  of  125  feet  below  the  present 


56 


TWENTY-ONE    YEARS'   WORK. 


surface  of  the  ground.  The  foundations  were  laid 
bare,  by  means  of  deep  shafts  sunk  through  the 
ddbris,  and  it  was  proved  that  the  stones  had  been 
lowered  into  their  places,  ready  dressed  ;  that  the 
dressing  of  the  stones  is  not  uniform,  for  in  some 
parts  they  present  a  rough  face  with  a  marginal  draft. 
And  in  others  a  smooth  face  also  with  a  marginal  di*aft. 
The  corner  stones  are  from    14  to    15    feet  in   length. 


riiiiracters  in  Lowest  Stones-,  S.E.  wall. 


THE  EXCA  VA  TIONS  A  T  JERUSALEM. 


57 


Inscribed  Jar  Handles. 

and  from  3|  to  4^  feet  in  height ;  in  some  of  those 
at  the  S.E.  angle  Phoenician  characters  were  found 
— ^jar  handles  were  also  found  here  with  Phoenician 
characters  which  are  variously  interpreted  ;  the  arch 
called  Robinson's  arch  was  proved  to  have  been  the 
last  of  a  series  of  arches  leading  to  the  Temple  from 
the  Upper  City,  the  voussoirs  of  two  arches,  one  con- 
structed after  the  other  had  fallen  in,  were  lying  buried 
in  the  ground  beneath  it.  Excavations  were  also  made 
at  Wilson's  arch  higher  up  on  the  same  side  of  the 
wall  and  disclosed  a  series  of  rock-cut  chambers,  the 
purpose  of  which  is  unknown,  with  a  broad  subter- 
ranean passage  evidently  designed  for  the  secret  pas- 
sage of  troops  from  the  citadel  to  the  Temple  in  case 
of  need.  A  single  course  of  great  stones  was  found  to 
run  from  the  south-east  angle  to  the  Double  Gate ;  and 
the  so-called  Solomon's  Stables  were  proved  to  be  a 


58 


IIVENTY-ONE    YEARS'    WORK'. 


comparatively  modern  re-construction.  The  alleged 
great  wall  600  feet  from  the  south-west  angle  {see 
Smith's  "Dictionary  of  the  Bible,"  art.  Jerusalem)  was 
proved  to  have  no  existence.    The  wall  of  Ophel  was 


Gallery  near  E.  wall. 

found  and  traced  for  a  long  distance.  An  aqueduct  was 
found  on  the  west  side  older  than  the  portion  of  the  wall 
at  the  south-west  angle;  the  Tyropoeon  valley  was 
followed  up, and  rock  levels  have  been  obtained  showing 


THE  EXCA  VA  TIONS  A  T  JER  US  ALE  M.  59 

the  contour  of  the  whole  city  except  at  one  point, 
namely,  that  within  the  south-west  front  of  the  Haram 
Area,  concerning  which  there  is  still  some  uncertainty. 
These  points  have  been  enumerated  because  they  bear 
specially  on  the  problem  of  the  site  of  the  Temple, 
The  conclusions  drawn  from  the  facts  by  Sir  Charles 
Warren  are  that  the  oldest  portion  of  the  wall  is  the 
south-east  part  and  the  south  as  far  as  the  Double 
Gate;  that  Solomon's  palace  stood  in  the  south-east, 
and  that  the  south-west  was  built  by  Herod;  and  that 
the  Temple  stood  in  the  middle ;  where,  in  fact, 
Jewish,  Christian  and  Mohammedan  tradition  all  unite 
in  placing  it. 

Since  these  excavations  many  curious  and  valuable 
discoveries  and  observations  have  been  made.  Thus, 
the  capitals  in  the  Dome  of  the  Rock  have  been 
accurately  sketched,  the  Kalat  Jalud  and  the  Tower  of 
David  have  been  examined.  The  First  Wall  on  the 
south  of  Mount  Zion  has  been  discovered  and  traced 
by  Henry  Maudslay,  C.E. ;  the  existence  of  ancient 
tombs  below  the  church  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre  has 
been  proved  and  the  tombs  planned,  and  the  whole  of 
the  country  round  the  city  has  been  carefully  explored 
and  described. 

New  things  arc  continually  being  found  in 
Jerusalem,  e.g.,  the  ancient  wall  discovered  this  very 
year,  which  may  very  likely  turn  out  to  be  the  Second 
Wall  ;  new  discoveries  connected  with  the  old  walls 


6o 


TWENTY-ONE    YEARS'    WORK. 


with  the  Temple,   and  with   the  various  occupiers  (jf 
the  city,  but  it   is  certain  that   nothinf:^  will   ever  be 


w^n 

'■      # 

11!"'       "1 

imSfer^^irs^ii: 

i^; 

Cnpitals  supporting  the  Dome  of  the  Rock. 

done  in  the  future  to  compare  with  what  was  done  by 
Warren.  Before  he  dug  there,  the  ancient  city  was 
measured  by  the  modern  the  *'  sleepy  little  Jcbusitc 


THE  EXCA  VA  TIONS  A  T  JERUSALEM. 


6i 


Lamps  fouml  in  the  Excavaiiuns. 


62  TWENTY-ONE    YEARS'   WORK. 

town,"  as  it  has  been  called.  The  proud  words  of 
Joscphus,  the  passionate  love  of  the  Jews  for  their  city, 
and  their  praise  of  its  ancient  glories,  seemed  exag- 
gerated and  absurd  in  presence  of  those  grey  walls 
and  those  narrow  limits.  It  was  Warren  who  restored 
the  ancient  city  to  the  world ;  he  it  was  who  stripped 
the  rubbish  from  the  rocks,  and  showed  the  glorious 
Temple  standing  within  its  walls,  i,ooo  feet  long  and 
200  feet  high,  of  mighty  masonry ;  he  it  was  who  laid 
open  the  valleys  now  covered  up  and  hidden ;  he  who 
opened  the  secret  passages,  the  ancient  aqueducts,  the 
bridge  connecting  temple  and  town.  Whatever  else 
may  be  done  in  the  future,  his  name  will  always  be 
associated  with  the  Holy  City  which  he  first  recovered. 
Many  questions,  it  is  true,  still  remain  unanswered, 
many  gaps  in  our  knowledge  have  to  be  filled  up,  but, 
in  the  main  features,  those  who  have  followed  Warren 
and  Conder  in  their  statement  of  facts  and  their 
conclusions,  and  who  agree  with  them,  have  no  longer 
any  doubt  as  to  the  position  of  the  Temple,  and  the 
real  builders  of  the  Kubbet  es  Sakhra, 

As  regards  the  true   and  actual  site  of  the  Holy 
Sepulchre  there  are  four  schools. 

I.  Those  who  believe  that  the  site  fixed  on  for 
the  buildings  of  Constantino  was  the  true 
site,  well  known  to  and  remembered  by 
Christians  from  the  very  beginning,  and  that 
it  is  the  site  now  shown. 


THE  EXCA  VA  TIONS  A  T  JER  US  ALE  M.  63 


2.  Those  who  think,  with  Fergusson,  that  Con- 

stantine's  site  was  that  now  covered  by 
the  Dome  of  the  Rock,  and  that  it  was 
the  true  one,  well  known  to  Christians  of 
his  time. 

3.  Those  who  think  that  Constantine's  site  is  that 

now  called  the  Holy  Sepulchre,  but  that  in 
his  time  the  Christians  knew  no  more  about 
the  real  site  than  we  ourselves  know, 

4.  Those  who    believe  that  the  true  site  is  that 

proposed  by  Captain    Conder,  outside   the 
present  walls. 
If  the  Second  Wall  be  proved  to  include  the  present 
church,  then  the  first  school  are  for  ever  silenced,  and 
the  present  traditional  sites  are  forever  abolished.  If 
Warren,  Conder,  Palmer,  and  others  who  believe  the 
Dome  of  the  Rock  to  have  been  built  by  Abd  el  Meiek 
be  right,  then  the  second  school  is  silenced.   Of  the  third 
opinion,  nothing  need  here  be  said,  except  that  it  is 
undoubtedly  certain    that    no    reference  whatever    is 
made  to  the  site  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre  before  the  time 
of  Eusebius,  although  Christians  were,  much  earlier 
than  this  time,  in  the  habit  of  making  pilgrimages  to 
the  site  of  the  Ascension.     As  to  the  fourth  opinion, 
Conder's   suggestions  may  be  read   in  the    Quarterly 
Statement.      If   they   do    not    carry  conviction    they 
make  out  a  very  strong  case  for  the  position  of  the 
Tomb  in  the  immediate  vicinity  to  that  proposed. 


64 


CHAPTER   V. 

THE   DESERT   OF   THE   EXODUS. 

In  the  year  1870  an  examination  was  made  of  a  part 
of  the  Desert  of  the  Tih  which  had  often  been  crossed 
but  never  explored.  (^Quarterly  Statement,  January, 
1 87 1.)  Prof  Palmer  undertook  the  w^ork  accompanied 
by  ]\Ir.  C.  F,  Tyrwhitt  Drake,  both  now,  unhappily, 
deceased. 

They  travelled  alone,  on  foot,  and  with  no  servants, 
being  dressed  as  Syrians,  and  depending  only  on  the 
escort  of  the  camel  drivers,  who  were  changed  from 
tribe  to  tribe,  and  on  their  own  knowledge  of  the 
language  and  customs  of  the  natives. 

The  result  of  the  expedition  may  be  briefly  summed 
up. 

I.  Praehistoric  monuments. 

They  found  scattered  about  numerous  nazvaDiis 
("mosquito  houses")  similar  to  those  which  exist  in 
the  Peninsula  of  Sinai.  These  are  circular  con- 
structions about  ten  feet  in  diameter,  built  of  unhewn 
stones  and  covered  with  a  carefully  constructed  dome- 
shaped  roof,  the  top  of  which  is  closed  by  a  large  slab 


Jebel  Magrah 


W.  Garaiyeh. 


^i'li  :i:i|il|i'lllllililliii!lillilllliiiN!iih:wiliMiMliiM.nt,jv.ui.iiuiJ.l"  .n-mii. 

I 
W.Jerafch 


THE  DESERT  OF  THE  EXODUS.  65 

of  stone  and  the  sides  weighted  to  prevent  them 
springing-  out ;  the  entrance  is  by  a  low  door,  two  feet 
high.  They  are  Hke  the  "bothan"  of  the  Shetland  Isles. 

They  found  many  large  stone  circles,  some  a  hundred 
feet  in  diameter,  having  in  the  centre  a  cist  covered 
with  a  heap  of  boulders.  In  the  cists  were  human 
skeletons. 

Beside  these  sepulchral  rings  were  traces  of  the 
deserted  buildings  of  the  people  buried  in  them.  They 
are  collections  of  circles  enclosed  within  rudely  shaped 
wallsj  probably  permanent  camps  of  a  pastoral  people. 
We  have  here,  probably,  the  Hazeroth  of  the  Bible 
(Numbers  xi.  35,  Deuteronomy  i.  i).  The  Moors  in 
Morocco  to  this  day  construct  camping  grounds 
exactly  similar.  On  the  hills  about  the  Wady 
Muweileh  were  found  among  cairns  and  ancient 
dwellings,  a  great  number  of  well  made  heaps  of  stone 
placed  with  regularity  along  the  edge  of  the  cliff 
and  all  facing  east.  These  it  is  supposed  are  ancient 
altars  of  Baal,  the  Sun  god. 

II.  Biblical  sites. 

I,  The  site  of  Kibroth   Hattaavah  (Numbers  xi. 

33-35)- 
The  place  proposed  for  this  important  identification 

now  called  Erweis  el  Ebierig,  is  an  elevated  ground, 

admirably    adapted    for    the    assemblage  of  a   large 

concourse    of  people,  and    covered    for    miles    round 

with    traces    of    such    an    assemblage    and    sojourn. 

£ 


66  TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'   WORK. 

It  is  according  to  tradition  the  camp  of  a  great  Hajj 
caravan  which  in  remote  ages  sojourned  here  and  were 
afterwards  lost  and  ncv^er  heard  of  again.  The 
distance  is  exactly  a  day's  journey  from  'Ain  Hudherah. 

2.  The  site  of  Haradeh  (Numbers  xxxiii.  24). 
The  place  proposed  is  now  called  Jebel  'Aradeh. 

3.  Eshcol  (Numbers  xiii.  23,  24). 

This  place  has  generally  been  identified  with 
Hebron,  but  Palmer  found  evidence  that  the  vineyards 
formerly  extended  a  long  way  south  of  that  city,  and 
that  there  is  no  need  to  place  Eshcol  so  far  north. 

4.  Hagar's  Well  (Genesis  xxi.  19). 

Identified  with  a  spring  in  the  Wady  Muweileh. 

5.  Kadcsh    Barnea    (Genesis    xiv.    7  ;    Numbers 

xiii.  3-26;  xiv.  29-33;  >^-^-  i;   Deuteronomy 

ii.  14). 

Palmer  agreed  with  those  who  would  place 
Kadesh  in  the  region  near  where  Rowlands  made 
his  discovery  in  the  year  1840,  but  he  failed  to 
find  Rowlands's  great  spring,  which  was  not  re- 
discovered for  many  years  afterwards,  when  the  Rev. 
F.  W.  Holland  first,*  and  Dr.  Clay  Trumbull,  an 
American  traveller,  secondly,!  were  so  fortunate  as 
to  find  it.  The  place  and  its  associations  are  related 
by  Mr.  Trumbull  in  an  excellent  monograph  called 

*  May  14,  1878.     StCQ  Quarterly  Statemetif,  1884,  p.  9. 
t   March  30lh,  i88l. 


!""T  ^'Si 


tii 


\ 


*'■''■'.;'■<'' 


'*:;-^J 


■:f;^ 


■i 


■A  2 


'2 


Halt!! 


TfTF.  DESERT  OF  THE  EXODUS.  67 


"Kadesh  Barnea"  (New  York,    1884),  from  which  the 
following  eloquent  account  is  quoted : — 

Out  from  the  barren  and  desolate  stretch  of  the  burning 
desert-waste,  we  had  come  with  a  magical  suddenness  into 
an  oasis  of  verdure  and  beauty,  unlooked  for  and  hardly 
conceivable  in  such  a  region.  A  carpet  of  grass  covered  the 
ground.  Fig  trees,  laden  with  fruit  nearly  ripe  enough  for 
eating,  were  along  the  shelter  of  the  southern  hillside. 
Shrubs  and  flowers  showed  themselves  in  variety  and  pro- 
fusion. Running  water  gurgled  under  the  waving  grass. 
We  had  seen  nothing  like  it  since  leaving  Wady  Fayran  ; 
nor  was  it  equalled  in  loveliness  of  scene  by  any  single  bit 
of  landscape,  of  like  extent,  even  there. 

Standing  out  from  the  earth-covered  limestone  hills  at 
the  north-eastern  sweep  of  this  picturesque  recess,  was  to 
be  seen  the  "  large  single  mass,  or  a  small  hill,  of  solid 
rock,"*  which  Rowlands  looked  at  as  the  cliff  {SeFa)  smitted 
by  Moses,  to  cause  it  to  "  give  forth  his  water,"t  when  its 
flowing  stream  had  been  exhausted.  From  underneath  this 
ragged  spur  of  the  north  easterly  mountain  range,  issued 
the  now  abundant  stream. 

A  circular  well,  stoned-up  from  the  bottom  with  time- 
worn  limestone  blocks,  was  the  first  receptacle  of  the  water. 
A  marble  watering  trough  was  near  this  well — better 
finished  than  the  troughs  at  Beersheeba,  but  of  like  primi- 
tive workmanship.  The  mouth  of  this  well  was  only  about 
three  feet  across,  and  the  water  came  to  within  three  or 
four  feet  of  the  top.  A  little  distance  westerly  from  this 
well,  and  down  the  slope,  was  a  second  well,  stoned-up 
much  like  the  first,  but  of  greater  diameter;  and  here 
again  was  a  marble  watering  trough.  A  basin  or  pool  of 
water  larger  than  either  of  the  wells,  but  not  stoned-up  hke 

*  William's  Holy  City,  p.  490/.  f  Numbers  xx.  8. 

E    2 


68  'IWENTY-ONE   YEARS'   WORK. 


them,  was  stcmingly  the  principal  watering  place.  It  was 
a  short  distance  south-westerly  from  the  second  well,  and  it 
looked  as  if  it  and  the  two  wells  might  be  supplied  from 
the  same  subterranean  source — the  springs  under  the  Rock. 
Around  the  margin  of  this  pool,  as  also  around  the  stoned 
wells,  camel  and  goat  dung — as  if  of  flock  and  herds  for 
centuries — was  trodden  down  and  commingled  with  the  lime 
stone  dust  so  as  to  form  a  solid  plaster-bed.  Another  and 
yet  larger  pool,  lower  down  the  slope  was  supplied  with 
water  by  a  stream  which  rii)pled  and  cascaded  along  its 
narrow  bed  from  the  upper  ])ool  ;  and  yet  beyond  this, 
westward,  the  water  gurgled  away  under  the  grass,  as  we 
had  met  it  when  we  came  in,  and  finally  lost  itself  in  the 
parching  wady  from  which  this  oasis  opened.  The  water 
itself  was  remarkably  pure  and  sweet ;  unequalled  by  any 
we  had  found  after  leaving  the  Nile. 

There  was  a  New  England  look  to  this  oasis,  especially 
in  the  flowers  and  grass  and  weeds  ;  quite  unlike  anything 
we  had  seen  in  the  peninsula  of  Sinai.  Bees  were  humming 
there,  and  birds  were  flitting  from  tree  to  tree.  Enormous 
ant  hills  made  of  green  grass-seed,  instead  of  sand,  were 
numerous.  As  we  came  into  the  wady  we  had  started  up  a 
hare,  and  had  seen  larks  and  quails.  It  was  in  fact  hard 
to  realise  that  we  were  in  the  desert  or  even  near  it.  The 
delicious  repose  of  the  spot,  after  our  journey  over  the  arid, 
gravel-waste  under  the  blazing  mid-day  sun,  was  most 
refreshing.  The  water  itself  was  hardly  less  of  a  blessing 
to  us  than  to  the  Israelites  when  it  flowed  and  murmured 
anew  for  them  after  their  murmurings.  We  seated  ourselves 
in  the  delightful  shade  of  one  of  the  hills  not  far  from  the 
wells,  and  enjoyed  our  lunch,  with  the  music  of  brook  and 
bees  and  birds  sounding  pleasantly  in  our  ears.  Our 
Arabs  seemed  to  feel  the  soothing  influence  of  the  place  ; 
and  to  have   lost   all    fear   of  the   'Azazimeh,  even   when 


THE  DESERT  OF  THE  EXODUS.  69 

the  danger  from  them  was  probably  greatest.  After  a 
brief  rest  on  the  grass,  they  all  stripped,  and  plunged 
into  the  lower  and  larger  pool  for  a  bath. 

One  thing  was  sure  ;  all  that  Rowlands  had  said  of  this 
oasis  was  abundantly  justified  by  the  facts.  His  enthusiasm 
and  his  active  imagination  had  not  coloured  in  the  slightest 
his  picture  of  the  scene  now  before  us.  The  sneers  which 
other  travellers  had  indulged  in,  over  the  creation  of  his 
heated  fancies,  were  the  result  of  their  own  lack  of  know- 
ledge— and  charity.  And  as  to  the  name  of  the  oasis, 
about  which  Robinson  and  others  were  so  incredulous,  it 
is  Qadees  (^a^^'jji),  as  it  was  written  for  me  in  Arabic  by 
my  intelligent  Arab  dragoman,  a  similar  name  to  that  of 
Jerusalem,  El-Quds,  the  Holy ;  the  equivalent  of  the 
Hebrew  Kadesh. 

6.  Zephath  (Judges  i.  17). 

The  name  of  Sebata  had  been  given  to  Rowlands, 

but  no  one  else  had  ever  heard  it,  and  the  place  had 

never  been  visited.     Palmer,  however,  found  not  only 

the  name,  under   the  form  of  Sebaita,  but  also   the 

Watch  Tower  (Zephath)  which  gave  the  name  to  the 

city.     The  ruins  are  those  of  a  large  town,  500  yards 

long  by  300  wide  (modern  Jerusalem  within  the  walls 

is  only  about  I,  lOO  yards  across  either  north  and  south, 

or   east    and    west).     There   are   the    ruins    of   three 

churches,  a  tower,  and  two  reservoirs  for  water.     No 

timber  was  used,  the  absence  of  wood  being  supplied 

by  thick  beams  of  stone  as  in  the    staircase.     The 

place  is  three  miles  from  the  fortress,  which  according 

to  Palmer's  theory,  c^ave  it  the  name  of  the  "  Watch 

Tower." 


70  .  TWENTY- OXE  YEARS'   WORK. 

This  is  one  of  the  most  remarkable  examples  of 
the  tenacity  of  the  ancient  names.  It  is  3,500  years 
since  "Juclah,  with  Simon  his  brother,"  changed  the 
name  from  Zephath  to  Hormah.  The  country  has 
been  successively  Jewish,  Roman,  Christian,  Moham- 
medan, Christian  again,  and  Mohammedan  again. 
Yet  here  is  the  original  name  surviving  still. 

7.  The  Wells  of  Rehoboth  (Genesis  xxvi.  22). 

In  Wady  Ruhcibeh,  Dr.  Robertson  could  find  no 
wells  at  all.  Dr.  Stewart  found  one.  Dr.  Rowlands 
found  one.  Palmer  and  Drake,  after  some  search, 
discovered  a  well  covered  over  by  a  piece  of  fallen 
masonry.  The  two  wells  of  Genesis  xxvi.  21,  22, 
were  called  Sitnah  and  Esek.  On  the  left  of  the 
Wady  Ruheibeh  there  is  a  small  valley  called 
Shutnet  er  Ruheibeh,  in  which  is  still  found  the 
word  Sitnah. 

8.  Aroer  of  Judah  (i  Samuel  xxx.  28). 

This  is  in  the  Wady  Ararah,  a  few  walls  only 
remaining. 

9.  Elusa. 

This  place,  laid  down  in  the  Peutinger  Tables,  was 
identified  by  Robinson  with  Khalasah.  But  Robin- 
son did  not  visit  it,  and  laid  it  down  incorrectly. 
Palmer  found  it  to  be  a  shapeless  mass  of  ruins. 

10.  The  Wells  of  Beersheba  (Genesis  xxi.  14,  &c.). 
Here  Palmer  found  the  hill  side  covered  with  ruins, 


THE  DESERT  OF  THE  EXODUS.  71 

among   them  the   remains  of  a    Greek   church   {see 
p.  lOl). 

11.  Hora,  a  large  ruin  with  caves,  cisterns,  and 

flint-built  houses. 

12.  Datreiyeh,  built    of    solid    masonry,  and  on 

arches. 

13.  Ed  Dhaheriyeh,  an  old  city  of  the  Horites 
or  Cave  Dwellers.     (Conder's  Debir.) 

14.  Abdeh,  the  ancient  Eboda, 

This  place  was  visited  for  the  first  time  by  Palmer. 

15.  El  'Aujeh. 

The  ruins  contain  a  church  with  heaps  of  broken 
walls  and  half  destroyed  wells. 

III.  The  recovery  of  the  geographical  divisions  of 
the  Negeb  or  South  country.     Thus, 

1.  In  the  low  country  north  and  west  of  Beersheba 

we  recognise  Negeb  of  the  Cherethites. 

2.  South  of  Hebron,  in  the  outposts  of  the  hills 

of  Judah,  we  can  identify  the  Negeb  of 
Judah,  the  ruined  cities  of  Tel  Zif,  Main,  and 
Kurmul,  indicating  the  locality  of  the  Negeb 
of  Caleb. 

3.  Tel  Arad  and  its  adjacent  plains   form   the 

Negeb  of  the  Kenites,  probably  extending  to 
the  south-western  end  of  the  Dead  Sea. 

4.  Between   Wady   Rukhmeh  in  the  north,  and 

Wadies  El  Abyadh,  Marrch,  and  Madarah, 
in  the  south,  lay  the  Negeb  of  Jerahmeel. 


72  TWENTY-ONE    YEARS'  IVORK. 

The  mountains  of  the  Azazimeh  were  not 
included  in  the  Negeb. 

These  are  the  principal  results  of  a  very  remarkable 
and  fruitful  expedition,  which  was  afterwards  continued 
through  Edom  and  Moab,  with  visits  to  Petra,  Mount 
Hor,  the  Lisan,  and  Kcrak.  The  complete  examination 
of  this  district,  with  excavations  in  the  ruins,  will  be 
undertaken,  it  is  hoped,  in  the  immediate  future. 


73 


,    CHAPTER   VI. 

THE   SURVEY   OF   WESTERN   PALESTINE. 

We  how  come  to  the  Survey  of  Western  Palestine, 
the  work  of  which  we  have  the  most  reason  to  be 
proud,  because  it  has  in  every  respect  answered  all 
our  expectations. 

As  regards  previous  geographical  work  in  the  Holy 
Land,  the  earliest  maps  worthy  of  mention  are  those  of 
D'Anville(L'Empire  Turc)  and  Rennell's  Geography 
of  Western  Asia.  A  map  of  Palestine  and  Syria  was 
prepared  by  Napoleon  I.,  and  the  Admiralty  survey 
of  the  coast  included  a  certain  amount  of  survey  work 
of  the  interior.  The  first  attempt  to  classify  and 
portray  in  a  .systematic  manner  the  results  obtained 
by  earlier  travellers  was  in  the  map  of  Bcrghaus  (Karte 
von  Syrien)  published  in  the  year  1835.  Among 
those  travellers  are  the  well-known  Clarke,  Seetzen, 
Burckhardt,  Irby  and  Mangles,  Catherwood,  Wellsted, 
and  others.  In  1836-37,  Von  Schubert  travelled  through 
the  country  and  added  considerably  to  the  knowledge 
of  its  natural  history  and  scenery.  In  1838  Rus- 
segger  collected  a  great  quantity  of  geological  infor- 
mation.    In    the    same    year    Robinson    and    Smith 


74  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'   WORK. 

made  their  first  journey  through  the  country  from 
Sinai  to  Damascus.  Robinson  had  prepared  himself 
by  fifteen  years  of  study.  The  map  which  resulted 
from  his  observations  entirely  superseded  Bcrghaus, 
while  his  account  of  his  travels  was,  up  to  the  appear- 
ance of  our  new  map  with  the  Memoirs,  the  text-book 
of  all  students  of  Biblical  geography. 

In  1 84 1  Lieutenant  Symonds,  R.E.,  made  a  triangu- 
lation  from  Jaffa  to  Jerusalem,  and  from  there  to  the 
Dead  Sea ;  and  another  from  Cape  Blanco  to  Safed 
and  the  Sea  of  Galilee.  Sketches  were  also  made  at 
the  same  time  by  Scott,  Robe,  and  Wilbraham. 
In  1847  Lieutenant  Molyneux  descended  the  Jordan 
from  Galilee  to  the  Dead  Sea,  but  unfortunately  died 
from  the  effects  of  exposure  to  the  sun.  Lynch,  who 
followed  him  in  1848,  executed  a  rough  sketch 
of  the  course  of  the  Jordan  and  a  chart  of  the  Dead 
Sea.  In  1850  the  western  and  southern  shores  of  the 
Dead  Sea  were  visited  by  M.  De  Saulcy  ;  in  1851-52 
Van  de  Velde  first  visited  the  country;  in  1852 
Robinson  and  Eli  Smith  made  a  second  journey ; 
in  1853  Dean  Stanley  made  his  first  journey;  in 
1850-55,  Dr.  Porter  lived  in  the  country;  in  1855 
Mr.  Poole  investigated  the  western  and  southern 
shores;  in  1857,  Mr.  Cyril  Graham  travelled  in  the 
Hauran  and  the  district  of  the  El  Harrah;  in  1858 
Herr  Wetzstein  also  visited  the  Hauran  ;  in  1860-61, 
the  French  troops  being  in  Syria,  certain  reconnais- 


THE  SURVEY  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE.  75 

sances  were  made,  afterwards  embodied  in  the  Carte 
du  Liban ;  Captain  Mansel,  R.N.  at  the  same  time 
made  an  Admiralty  survey  of  the  coast.  In  the  years 
1861-62,  Van  de  Velde  made  a  second  visit  to  the 
country,  and  in  1863  Dean  Stanley  also  visited  it 
again.  In  1863-64  Canon  Tristram  travelled  through 
Palestine,  and  at  the  same  time  the  Due  de  Luynes 
took  a  party  into  the  country,  among  whom  were 
Lieutenant  Vogues  of  the  French  navy,  and  M. 
Lartet.  The  former  executed  a  map  of  the  Dead  Sea 
and  the  Arabah,  while  the  latter  published  a  work  on 
the  geology  of  Palestine,  which  is  of  the  highest 
value.  In  1870  Captains  Mieulet  and  Derrien,  of  the 
French  Etat  Major,  began  what  was  intended  to  be  a 
survey  of  the  whole  country,  but  were  recalled  by  the 
outbreak  of  the  Franco- German  war. 

So  much  then,  not  including  Wilson  and  Ander- 
son's work  of  1865  and  the  reconnaissance  of  Warren 
in  1 867- 1 870,  had  been  done  for  the  geography  of 
Palestine  before  the  survey. 

At  the  commencement,  and  in  order  to  set 
forth  the  need  of  such  a  survey,  there  was  prepared  a 
comparative  map  showing  first  a  portion  of  Pales- 
tine, including  a  small  piece  of  country  surveyed 
by  Wilson,  and  beside  it  a  corresponding  portion 
from  the  ordnance  survey  of  Kent.  The  map  of 
Van  de  Velde  was  at  that  time  the  best  of  all 
maps   of  Palestine  \    it   was   the   work   of  a  careful 


76  TlVENry-ONR  YEARS'   WORK. 

and  scientific  traveller  and  scholar,  who  not  only  took 
observations  himself,  but  laid  down  on  his  map  all 
the  observations  made  by  previous  travellers.  We 
had  before  the  meeting  of  June  22nd,  1886,  an 
enlargement  of  a  portion  of  Van  de  Velde's  map, 
and  beside  it,  an  enlargement  of  the  Society's  survey 
of  the  same  portion.  The  first,  with  its  hills  roughly 
sketched  in,  its  valleys  laid  down  roughly,  and  its 
inhabited  places,  villages,  or  ruins,  gives  absolutely 
all  that  was  known  of  this  piece  of  country  before 
the  survey.  It  was  on  such  a  map  as  this,  the  best 
at  the  time,  because  the  most  faithful,  that  the 
geographical  student  had  to  work.  There  was  little 
use  from  a  geographical  point  of  view  in  consulting 
previous  books  of  travel,  because  they  gave  no  facts 
other  than  had  been  taken  from  them  and  laid  down 
upon  the  map  by  Van  de  Velde  ;  hardly  any  single 
place  was  laid  down  correctly ;  none  of  the  hill 
shading  was  accurate ;  the  course  of  the  rivers 
and  valleys  was  not  to  be  depended  upon  ;  the  de- 
pression of  the  Lake  of  Galilee  was  variously  stated  ; 
distances  were  estimated  by  the  rough  reckoning 
of  time  taken  from  place  to  place  ;  and  out  of  the 
10,000  names  collected  by  our  officers  and  laid  upon 
our  map,  Van  de  Velde's  had  about  1,800,  while  the 
general  index  of  names  given  by  Robinson  shows  only 
17 1 2  names.  Not  a  single  position  certain;  not  a 
single  distance  trustworthy  ;  not  a  range  of  hills,  not 


THF.  SURVEY  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE.  77 

a  river  or  a  wady  correctly  laid  down ;  and  only  an 
eighth  part  of  the  modern  names  collected,  and  this 
for  a  country  where  the  ancient  names  survive  with 
a  most  remarkable  vitality,  clinging  under  changed 
forms  to  the  old  sites  ;  where  the  history  which  these 
lands  illustrate  is  singularly  minute,  and  assumes 
everywhere  a  knowledge  of  the  country,  so  that  the 
writer  never  stops  to  explain  where  the  scene  of  every 
episode  occurs,  except  to  name  it  as  a  spot  already 
known,  and  where  the  boundaries  of  the  tribes  cannot 
possibly  be  laid  down  without  an  exact  knowledge  of 
those  features  which  in  every  country  constitute  the 
natural  boundaries. 

It  was  to  remedy  this  state  of  things  that  the 
survey  was  undertaken.  The  first  officer  in  command 
was  Captain  Stewart,  R.E.  With  him  was  associated 
Mr.  C.  F.  Tyrwhitt  Drake,  attached  partly  as  a 
naturalist,  partly  as  archaeologist,  and  partly  on 
account  of  his  knowledge  of  the  country  and  the 
people,  having  been  on  expeditions  previously,  once 
with  Captain  Burton  in  North  Syria,*  and  once  with 
Professor  Palmer  through  the  Desert  of  the  Tih  (see 
supra  chapter  V.). 

Captain  Stewart,  however,  was  unfortunately  in- 
valided home  and  obliged  to  resign  almost  at  the  veiy 
outset.  Sergeants  Black  and  Armstrong,  his  assistants, 
began  and  carried  on  the  work  until   the   arrival  of 

*  See  "  Unexplored  Syria,"  by  Burton  ami  Drake,  1S72. 


78 


TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'  VVORIC. 


Lieutenant  Conder,  R.E.  The  survey  went  on  without 
interruption  until  June,  1874,  when  Mr.  Drake  was 
attacked  by  fever  and  died.  His  place  was  taken  by 
Lieutenant  Kitchener,  R.E.  The  next  interruption, 
four-fifths  of  the  work  being  then  accomplished,  was 
in  July,  1875,  when  the  party  were  attacked  by  the 
Safed  people    and   compelled     to    retreat    to    Haifa. 


Here  Captain  Conder  remained  to  fight  the  case  in  the 
Turkish  courts,  and  on  obtaining  a  sentence  and  fine 
for  the  assailants,  returned  to  England,  where  the 
party  were  occupied  with  field  work  at  home. 

In  1877,  Lieutenant  Kitchener  went  out  again  and 
finished  the  survey,  returning  home  in  1878.  The 
work  was  accomplished  under  great  pressure  and  in 


THE  SURVEY  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE. 


79 


a  time  of  great  excitement.  The  principal  discoveries 
made  by  Captain  Kitchener  in  this  part  of  the  survey, 
which  included  the  greater  part  of  Galilee,  were  cf  a 
previously  unknown  synagogue,  two  cromlechs  and  a 
large  number  of  ruins.     The  two  cromlechs,  together 


Cromlech  in  Galilee. 


.y       ^^. 


with  a  rude  stone  monument  discovered  by  Mr. 
Laurence  Oliphant  in  the  hilly  country  of  Eastern 
Judea,  are  the  only  old  stone  monuments  remaining 
in  Western  Palestine. 

The  map  when  completed  was  photo-lithographed 
by  the  Ordnance  Survey  Department  at  Southampton. 
It  was  published  in  1880.  A  reduction  was  made  on 
the  scale  of  8  miles  to  3  inches,  and  engraved  for  the 
Committee  by  Mr.  Edward  Stanford,  a  truly  beautiful 
piece  of  work,  and  one  which  reflects  the  greatest 
credit  on  the  engraver. 

The  memoirs  which  were  intended  to  accompany  this 
work  were  compiled  from  their  note  books  by  Captains 


8o  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'   WORK. 

Conder  and  Kitchener  during  the  years  1876-80,  and 
are  published  in  the  "  Survey  of  Western  Palestine  " 
(1880-84). 

The  Biblical  Gains  from  the  survey  may  be  con- 
sidered from  many  points  of  view. 

First,  therefore,  from  that  of  the  recovery  of  ancient 
sites.  There  are  622  Biblical  names  west  of  the 
Jordan.  Of  these  262  were  known  before  the  Survey 
was  commenced,  that  is,  rather  more  than  a  third. 
During  the  Survey  no  fewer  than  172  were  discovered, 
and  arc  now  generally  accepted.  So  that  of  the 
whole  number  of  places  now  identified,  namely  434, 
almost  exactly  two-fifths  are  due  to  the  Survey. 
There  still  remain  188  places  hitherto  undiscovered. 
Some  of  these  may  lie  among  the  10,000  names 
collected  by  the  surveyors.  Others  may  still  be 
discovered,  because  we  cannot  pretend  in  a  country  so 
full  of  names  to  have  collected  every  one.  But  those 
which  yet  await  recovery  are  for  the  most  part  obscure 
places  mentioned  perhaps  once  or  twice,  such  as  the 
Brook  Besor(i  Samuel  xxx.  9,  10,  21),  Avim  (Joshua 
xviii.  23),  or  Elcph  (Joshua  xviii.  28).  Some  names 
not  yet  found  are  important,  such  as  Arimathoea, 
Gath,  the  Brook  Cherith,  Eshcol,  the  stone  Ezel, 
Gethsemane,  Nob,  Mamre,  and  Ziklag.  It  is  to  be 
hoped  that  all  these  names  will,  one  by  one,  be 
rescued  from  oblivion. 

As  regards  the  natural  features  of  the  countr}-,  the 


I 

I 
( 

THE  SURVEY  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE.  8i 

Survey  has  substituted  exact  detail  for  general  state- 
ments. It  is  impossible  in  these  short  limits  to 
explain  the  enormous  importance  of  this  to  the 
historical  student.  The  boundaries  of  tribes  ;  the 
march  of  armies ;  the  route  of  travellers  and  pil- 
grims ;  the  way  of  commerce ;  intercourse  with  foreign 
nations  ;  the  fords,  passes,  and  valleys  open  for  an 
invader,— these  things  form  the  foundation  of  Bible 
history ;  without  these  things  its  history  cannot  be 
understood.  And  these  things  are  found  legible  to 
him  that  can  read  maps  on  our  great  survey.     A  few  ! 

instances,  however,  may  be  adduced.  The  ancient 
and   royal  city  of  Tirzah,  the  residence  of  Jeroboam  ' 

and  his  successors — "  beautiful  as  Tirzah,  comely  as 
Jerusalem  " — is  one  of  the  places  recovered  by  the 
survey. 

Just  twelve  miles  east  of  our  Jeb'a  camp,  on  a  plateau 
where  the  valleys  begin  to  dip  suddenly  towards  Jordan, 
stands  the  mud  hamlet  of  Teiasir.  We  afterwards  visited 
it  from  the  Jordan  camp,  and  found  it  to  have  been  once 
a  place  of  importance,  judging  from  the  numerous  rock-cut 
sepulchres  burrowing  under  the  houses,  the  fertile  lands  and 
fine  olives  round,  and  the  monument  of  good  masonry, 
seemingly  a  Roman  tomb.  Just  north,  of  it  we  discovered 
a  ruin  called  Ibzik,  which  is  unquestionably  a  Bezek  known 
to  Eusebius,  and  i)robal)ly  the  place  where  Saul  collected 
his  army  before  attacking  the  Ammonites  (i  Samuel  xi.  b). 

In  the  latter  ruin  is  a  little  chapel  dedicated  to  Neby 
Hazkin,  "  the  Prophet  Ezekiel,"  and  the  high  mountain 
crowned  with  thicket  behind  is  called  "  Ezekiel's  Moun- 
tain." 


82  TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'   WORK. 

This  name  Teiasir  I  su])pose  to  be  Tirzah.  It  contains 
the  exact  letters  of  the  Hebrew  word,  though  the  two  last 
radicals  are  interchanged  in  position,  a  kind  of  change  not 
unusual  among  the  peasantry.  The  beauty  of  the  position 
and  the  richness  of  the  plain  on  the  west,  the  ancient 
remains,  and  the  old  main  road  to  the  ]ilace  from  Shechem 
seem  to  agree  well  with  the  idea  of  its  having  once  been 
a  capital ;  and  if  I  am  right  in  the  suggestion,  then  the 
old  sepulchres  are  probably,  some  of  them,  those  of  the 
early  kings  of  Israel  before  the  royal  family  began  to  be 
buried  in  Samaria. 

Or,  as  an  illustration  of  how  the  map  and  a  descrip- 
tion together  help  to  restore  the  past,  read  what 
Captain  Condcr  says  of  the  defeat  and  flight  of  Sisera. 

The  subject  which  naturally  concludes  the  account  of 
the  Plain,  is  therefore  the  great  battle  in  which  the  host  of 
Sisera  was  drowned  in  the  swollen  waters  of  this  river. 

The  amount  of  light  which  can  now  be  thrown  on  this 
episode  is  very  great.  The  topography  has  hitherto  been 
obscure,  but  the  survey  does  much  to  explain  it.  To  sup- 
pose that  Sisera  fled  from  the  Great  Plain  to  the  neighbour- 
hood of  Kedes  in  Upper  Galilee  (a  distance  of  over  thirty 
miles)  has  always  appeared  to  me  to  be  contrary  to  what  we 
know  of  the  general  character  of  the  Biblical  stories,  the 
scenes  of  which  are  always  laid  in  a  very  confined  area  ; 
nor  has  the  name  of  the  plain,  Bitzaanaim,  near  Kedesh, 
been  recovered  in  th's  direction.  Bitzaanaim  was  a  town 
of  Issachar,  near  Adami  (Ed  Damieh)  and  should  there- 
fore be  sought  east  of  Tabor  in  the  plateau  over  the  Sea  of 
Galilee,  where  we  still  find  it  in  the  modern  Bessum. 
The  Kedesh  of  the  narrative  where  Barak  assembled  his 
troops  is  therefore  probably  Kedish  on  the  shore  of  the  Sea 
of  (ialilee,  only  twelve  miles  from  Tabor.      There  is  thus, 


THE  SURVEY  OE  WESTERN  PALESTINE. 


83 


- _  .,^.^.,>..^ ^ I  1 1 1 1     I I     III 


Restored/  Seclcon,  &  EleyaUaro 
N.  Froni/ 


Tomb  at  Teiasir. 


F    2 


84  rWENTY-ONE  YEARS'   WORK. 


from  a  military  point  of  view,  a  consistency  in  the  advance 
to  Tabor  (a  strong  position  in  the  line  by  which  the  enemy 
was  approaching),  which  is  lacking  if  we  suppose  a  descent 
from  the  stronger  hills  of  Upper  Galilee.  The  Kings  of 
Canaan  assembled  in  Taanach  and  by  the  waters  of 
Megiddo,  but  it  was  not  at  either  of  these  places  that  the 
battle  was  fought.  Sisera  was  drawn  to  the  river  Kishon 
(Judges  iv.  7),  and  the  host  perished  near  Endor,  "  at  the 
brook  Kishon  "  (Psalm  Ixxxiii.  10).  The  battle-field  indeed 
was  almost  identical  with  that  which  Napoleon  named  the 
"  battle  of  Mount  Tabor,"  when  the  French  drove  the  Turks 
into  that  same  treacherous  quagmire  of  the  Kishon  springs. 
There  are  few  episodes  in  the  Old  Testament  more 
picturesque  than  this  of  the  defeat  of  the  Canaanites. 
Tabor,  the  central  position,  a  mountain  whose  summit  is 
1,500  feet  above  the  plain,  is  bare  and  shapeless  on  the 
south,  but  to  the  north  it  is  steep,  and  wooded  with  oaks 
and  thickets  in  which  the  fallow-deer  finds  a  home.  About 
three  miles  west  are  the  springs  from  which  the  Kishon 
first  rises,  and  from  this  point  a  chain  of  pools  and  springs, 
fringed  with  reeds  and  rushes,  marks,  even  in  the  dry 
season,  the  course  of  the  river.  Along  this  line,  at  the 
base  of  the  northern  hills,  the  chariots  and  horsemen  of 
Sisera  fled.  The  sudden  storm  had  swollen  the  stream, 
"  the  river  Kishon  swept  them  away,  that  river  of  battles, 
the  river  Kishon."  The  remainder  fled  to  Harosheth,  now 
only  a  miserable  village  (El  Harathiyeh),  named  from  the 
beautiful  woods  above  the  Kishon  at  the  point  where, 
through  a  narrow  gorge,  the  stream,  hidden  among  oleander 
bushe.s,  enters  the  Plain  of  Acre. 

The  flight  of  Sisera  himself  was  in  an  opposite  direction, 
under  the  slopes  of  Tabor  and  across  the  great  lava  plateau 
on  which  stood,  near  Bessum,  the  black  tent  of  Heber  the 
Kenite.     The  two   incidents  in  the  tragedy  of  his  murder 


THE  SURVEY  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE.  85 

by  Jael,  which  most  require  illustration  are  tlie  "milk"  and 
"butter"  with  which  she  regaled  her  victim,  and  the 
reasons  which,  in  her  eyes,  justified  the  deed. 

The  Bedawin  have  a  delicious  preparation  of  curdled 
milk  called  Leben,  which  is  offered  to  guests,  but  generally 
considered  a  delicacy  ;  from  personal  experience  I  know 
that  it  is  most  refreshing  to  a  traveller  when  tired  and  hot, 
but  it  has  also  a  strange  soporific  effect,  which  was  so 
sudden  in  its  action  on  one  English  clergyman  after  a  long 
ride,  that  he  thought  he  had  been  poisoned.  It  was 
perhaps  not  without  a  knowledge  of  its  probable  effects, 
that  Jael  gave  to  her  exhausted  guest  a  tempting  beverage 
which  would  make  his  sleep  sound  and  long. 

The  murder  of  a  fugitive  and  a  guest  is  so  contrary  to 
the  morality  of  the  Semitic  nomads,  that  we  must  seek  for 
a  very  strong  justification.  It  could  not  have  been  national 
enthusiasm  which  actuated  Jael,  for  she  was  a  Kenite,  not  a 
Jewess,  one  of  a  nation  hostile  to  Israel,  and  there  "  was 
peace  between  Jabin  King  of  Hazor  (Sisera's  master)  and 
the  house  of  Heber  the  Kenite."  The  true  reason  is  pro- 
bably to  be  sought  in  Sisera's  entering  the  tent  at  all. 
There  are  instances  in  later  history  in  which  a  defeated 
Arab  has  sheltered  himself  in  the  women's  apartments,  but 
such  an  infringement  of  Eastern  etiquette  has  always  been 
punished  by  death  ,  and  it  is  not  improbable  that  in  re- 
venge for  such  an  insult  Jael  seized  the  iron  tent-peg  and 
drove  it  with  the  mallet,  used  to  fix  the  tents  to  the  ground, 
through  Sisera's  brain. 

One  final  illustration  m.ay  be  added,  suggested  to  me 
quite  lately  by  an  English  clergyman.  In  the  magnificent 
song  of  Deborah,  the  great  storm  which  swelled  the  Kishon 
is  described  : 

"They  fought  from  heaven,  the  stars  in  their  courses 
fought  against  Sisera  "  (Judges  v.  20). 


86  TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'  WORK. 

The  season  was  probably  that  of  the  autumn  storms 
which  occur  early  in  November.  At  this  time  the  meteoric 
showers  are  commonest,  and  arc  remarkably  fine  in  effect, 
seen  in  the  evening  light  at  a  season  when  the  air  is 
specially  clear  and  bright.  The  scene  presented  by  the 
falling  fiery  stars,  as  the  defeated  host  fled  away  by  night,  is 
one  very  striking  to  the  fancy,  and  which  would  form  a  fine 
subject  for  an  artist's  pencil. 

Another  interesting  site  is  Antipatris,  of  which 
Captain  Conder  writes  : — 

It  was  well  known  in  the  fourth  century,  but  its  site  was 
lost  to  the  Crusaders,  who  identified  it  at  Arsuf,  the  ancient 
Appollonia,  where  also  the  more  ignorant  supposed  Ashdod 
to  have  stood.  It  is  only  within  the  last  twenty  years  that 
attention  has  been  directed  to  the  true  site. 

Josephus  describes  Antipatris  as  a  city  in  the  plain,  close 
to  the  hills,  in  a  position  well  watered,  with  a  river  encom- 
passing the  city,  and  with  groves  of  trees.  Now,  as  there  is 
but  one  river  in  the  plain  of  Sharon,  anywhere  near  the 
required  part,  and  as  there  is  on  that  river  but  one  impor- 
tant ancient  site,  surrounded  by  water  and  near  the  hills, 
we  can  have  little  doubt  as  to  the  locality  of  the  town, 
first  apparently  identified  by  the  late  Consul  Finn,  in  1850  ; 
but,  in  addition  to  this,  we  have  in  the  old  itineraries, 
various  measurements  to  surrounding  places  which,  though 
not  quite  exact,  still  serve  to  indicate  the  same  site.  They 
are  as  follows  : 

R.M.  R.M. 

Antipatris  to  Galgula  {Kalkilia)     6,  measures     6-^ 

„  Lydda  10,         ,,         11 

„  Betthar  {Tireh)  10,  „  9^ 

„  Csesarea  28,         ,,         30 

These  measurements  on  the  survey  bring  us  to  the  ruined 


THE  SURVEY  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE.  87 

site  of  Ras  el  'Ain,  a  large  mound  covered  with  ruins  from 
the  sides  of  which  on  the  north  and  west,  the  River 
'Auian  (the  Biblical  Mejarkon,  or  "yellow  water"),  gushes 
forth,  a  full-sized  stream. 

A  confusion  has  arisen  between  Antipatris  and  a  town 
called  Caphar  Saba,  in  consequence  of  the  loose  description, 
given  by  Josephus,  of  a  ditch  dug  by  Alexander  Balas, 
"  from  Cabarzaba,  now  called  Antipatris,"  to  Joppa  (Ant. 
xiii.  15,  i)  ;  but  the  same  author  afterwards  explains  that 
Caphar  Saba  was  a  district  name,  applied  to  the  plain  near 
Antipatris  (Ant.  xvi.  5,  2). 

In  the  Talmud,  the  two  towns,  Antipatris  and  Caphar 
Saba,  are  both  noticed  in  a  manner  which  leaves  little  doubt 
that  they  were  separate  places.  Of  Antipatris,  we  learn 
that  it  was  a  town  on  the  road  from  Judea  to  Galilee,  the 
boundary  of  "  the  Land  "  on  the  side  of  Samaria ;  and,  as  I 
have  noted  above,  the  great  boundary  actually  runs  into 
the  plain  at  this  point.  But  while  Antipatris  was  a  Jewish 
city,  Caphar  Saba  was  in  the  district  which  was  considered 
foreign  ground,  as  within  Samaritan  territory,  and  an 
idolatrous  tree  existed  there,  perhaps  now  represented  by 
the  great  sacred  tree  at  Neby  Serakah,  close  to  Kefr  Saba, 
five  and  a-half  miles  north  of  Ras  el  'Ain. 

Antipatris,  with  two  other  places,  Jishub  and  Balris,  is 
mentioned  as  a  station  at  the  entrance  to  "the  King's 
Mountain,"  as  the  Jews  called  the  Judean  hills.  This 
agrees  with  its  situation  at  the  base  of  the  hills,  the  other 
places  being,  perhaps,  Siifin  and  iiudrus,  in  the  same 
district. 

The  site  thus  fixed  by  the  survev  measureiuent.s,  is  one 
naturally  better  fitted  for  an  important  town  than  any  in  the 
district.  The  name  has  indeed  vanished,  being  a  (}reek 
title  derived  from  tliat  of  Herod's  father,  and  always 
awkward  to  the  mouths  of  the  natives  ;  but  the  stream,  the 


88 


TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'   WORK. 


mound  of   ruins,   and  the   neighbouring  hills  remain  ;  the 
deep  blue   pools  of  fresh   water  well  up  close  beneath  the 

S  c  ale    5^gQ 


W*  J  0      <^     70    30    'y    jc    6C     y    ^c     9r    1^'^    t't^  tfo    ttr    t*o    i^f>    t^    "o    tfc    'P*     tCf'letl 


fm^^^'T^^:^'^'^^^^^^^^^-^'^-  ^^^^:^^;^^^v  v^^/^g^^:-4 


Gatfy 


,U  The  Castle  stands  nrLCymoumiyncaSunruj  1000  feexE&  WbyiiSC^ 
feetN&S. 

Crusading:  Castle  at  Ras  el  "Ain. 


hillock,  surrounded  by  tall  canes,  and  willows,  rushes,  and 
grass.  A  sort  of  ragged  lawn  extends  some  two  hundred 
yards  southwards,  and   westward  the  stream   flows  rapidly 


THE  SURVEY  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE.  89 

away,  burrowing  between  deep  banks,  and  rolling  to  the 
sea,  a  yellow,  turbid,  sandy  volume  of  water,  unfordable  in 
winter,  and  never  dry,  even  in  summer. 

The  ruins  of  Herod's  city  are  now  covered  with  the  shell 
of  a  great  Crusading  castle.  The  knights  seem  to  have 
taken  the  name  Mirr,  or  "  Passage,"  applied  to  a  hamlet 
near  the  ford,  and  transformed  it  into  Mirabel,  by  adding 
"  bel,"  a  word  which  occurs  in  the  names  of  several  of 
their  fortresses,  such  as  Belfort,  Belvoir,  &c.  The 
castle  is  flanked  with  round  towers,  and  resembles  that  of 
Capernaum  (near  'Athlit),  on  a  larger  scale.  It  was  here 
that  Manasseh,  the  cousin  of  Queen  Melisenda,  was  besieged, 
in  1 149,  by  Baldwin  III.,  and  obliged  to  capitulate.  In 
1T91  IVIirabel  was  dismantled  by  Saladin,  on  the  approach 
of  King  Richard,  in  common  with  Plans,  Capernaum,  and 
many  other  castles ;  nor  does  it  appear  to  have  been 
subsequently  restored. 

Before  the  survey  it  would  have  seemed  hopeless  to 

recover  a  place  mentioned  only  once,    and    then    in 

connection  with  an  event  of  such  great  antiquity  as 

the    career    of   Samson.       Captain    Conder,  however, 

found  it  while  in  Samson's  country. 

The  substitution  of  B  for  M  is  so  common  (as  in  Tibneh 
for  Timnah),  tliat  the  name  " 'Atab  "  may  very  properly  re- 
present the  Hebrew  Etam  (or  "  eagle's  nest ")  ;  and  there 
are  other  indications  of  the  identity  of  the  site.  It  is 
pre-eminently  a  "  rock "  —  a  knoll  of  hard  limestone 
without  a  handful  of  arable  soil,  standing,  above  deep 
ravines,  by  three  small  springs.  The  place  is  also  one 
which  has  long  been  a  hiding-place,  and  the  reciuirements 
of  the  liible  story  are  met  in  a  remarkable  way ;  for  the 
word  rendered  "top  of  the  Rock  Etam  "  is  in  reality  "cleft  " 
or  "  chasm  ";  and  such  a  chasm  exists  here — a  long,  narrow 


90 


TWENTY- ONE   YEARS'  WORK. 


cavern,  such  as  Samson  might  well  have  "gone  down  "  into, 
and  wliich  bears  the  suggestive  name  Hasuta,  meaning 
"  refuge "  in  Hebrew,  but  having  in  modern  Arabic  no 
signification  at  all. 

This  remarkable  "  cave  of  refuge "  is  two  hundred  and 
fifty  feet  long,  eighteen  feet  wide,  and  five  to  eight  feet 
high  ;  its  south-west  end  is  under  the  centre  of  the  modern 
village ;  its  north-east  extremity,  where  is  a  rock  shaft  ten 
feet  deep  leading  down  from  the  surface  of  the  hill,  is 
within  sixty  yards  of  the  principal  spring. 

The  identification  thus  proposed  for  the  Rock  Etam  is, 
I  believe,  quite  a  new  one  ;  and  it  cannot,  I  think,  fail  to 
be  considered  satisfactory,  if  we  consider  the  modern  name, 
the  position,  and  the  existence  of  this  remarkable  chasm. 
Ramath  Lehi,  where  the  Philistines  assembled  when  search- 
ing for  Samson  (Judges  xv.  9-10),  is  naturally  to  be  sought 
in  the  vicinity  of  Zoreah — Samson's  home,  and  of  the 
Rock  Etam  where  he  took  refuge. 


Rock  Allar  of  Zoiah. 


A  little  way  north-west  of  Zoreah,  seven  miles  from  Beit 
'Atab,  is  a  low  hill,  on  the  slope  of  which  are  springs  called 
Ayun   Abu   Meharib,  or  the    "  fountains  of   the  place  of 


THE  SUE  VE  V  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE.  9 1 


battles."  Close  by  is  a  little  Moslem  chapel,  dedicated  to 
Sheikh  Nedhir,  or  "the  Nazarite  chief ;"  and,  higher  up, 
a  ruin  with  the  extraordinary  title  Ism  Allah—"  the  name 
of  God."  The  Nazarite  chief  is  probably  Samson,  whose 
memory  is  so  well  preserved  in  this  small  district,  and  the 
place  is  perhaps  connected  with  a  tradition  of  one  of  his 
exploits.  The  Ism  Allah  is  possibly  a  corruption  of  EsnVa 
Allah — "  God  heard  " — in  which  case  the  incident  intended 
will  be  the  battle  of  Ramath  Lehi.  Finally,  we  were 
informed  by  a  native  of  the  place  that  he  springs  were 
sometimes  called  'Ayun  Kara,  in  which  name  we  should 
recognise  easily  the  En  Hak-Kore,  or  "fountain  of  the 
crier  "  (Judges  XV.  19). 

To  say  that  this  spot  certainly  represents  Rathmath  Lehi 
— "the  hill  of  the  jaw-bone" — would  be  too  bold.  It 
seems,  however,  clear  that  a  tradition  of  one  of  Samson's 
exploits  lingers  here ;  the  position  is  appropriate  for  the 
scene  of  the  slaughter  with  the  jaw-bone,  and  we  have  not 
succeeded  in  finding  any  other  likely  site. 

We  may  note  the  shifting  of  sites— Nazareth,  for 
instance,  has  slipped  down  the  hill,  and  Jericho  has 
been  three  times  changed. 

As  regards  the  Cities  of  the  Plain,  a  remarkable 
example  occurs  of  how  the  survey  may  be  used  to 
recover  a  site.  Beyond  the  information  that  they 
were  in  the  Vale  of  Siddim,  "  which  is  the  Salt  Sea," 
there  is  nothing  known.  But  it  seems  almost  certain 
from  many  considerations,  that  they  must  have  been 
somewhere  at  the  north  of  the  Dead  Sea,  and  this 
being  so  they  may  have  stood  at  some  distance  from 


92 


TIVEATY-ONE    YEARS'   WORK. 


each  other,  and  it  is  further  absohitely  certain  that 
they  must  each  have  been  built  within  reach  of  a 
freshwater  spring. 

Now  there  are  but  few  springs  on  the  north  shore  of 
the  Dead  Sea  or  in  the  plain  near  it.  On  the  north- 
west there  is  a  fine  spring  called  'Ain   Feshkhah  and 


Ain  Jidy. 

higher  up  the  valley  springs  are  abundant.  Guided 
by  this  spring  we  find  a  great  bluff  not  far  south  of 
it  called  Tubk  'Amriyeh  and  a  neighbouring  valley 
called  Wady  'Amriyeh.  Now  this  word  is  radically 
identical  w^ith  Gomorrah  Again,  where  is  Zcboim? 
The  word  means  "  hya:nas."  A  cliff  just  above  the 
plain,  near  the  site  of  modern  Jericho,  is  called  Shukh 
cd  Duba,  (lair  of  the  hyaena).    Is  this  the  site  of  Zeboim? 


7 HE  SURVEY  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE.  93 

Again,  to  show  how  at  every  step  of  the  way  the 
Bible  may  be  illustrated  : 

There  is  one  other  remarkable  natural  feature  in  this 
interesting  plain  of  Jericho  which  demands  attention — the 
Kelt  Valley,  running  from  the  spring  of  that  name,  and  south 
of  Eriha,  past  Jiljulieh  to  Jordan.  There  seems  no  doubt 
that  this  is  the  Valley  of  Achor,  in  which  Achan  was 
stoned ;  and  the  bed  of  the  valley  is  full  of  boulders  and 
pebbles  of  every  size,  which  would  account  for  its  being 
chosen  as  the  scene  of  the  execution,  as  there  is  hardly  a 
stone  in  the  greater  part  of  the  plain  round  it. 

Wady  Kelt  has  been  also  thought  to  be  the  Brook 
Cherith,  and  the  scene  seems  well  fitted  for  the  retreat  of 
the  prophet  who  was  fed  by  the  "  'Oreb,"  whom  some 
suppose  to  have  been  Arabs.  The  whole  gorge  is  wonder- 
fully wild  and  romantic,  it  is  a  huge  fissure  rent  in  the 
mountains,  scarcely  twenty  yards  across  at  the  bottom,  and 
full  of  canes  and  rank  rushes  between  vertical  walls  of  rock. 
In  its  cliffs  the  caves  of  early  anchorites  are  hollowed,  and 
the  little  monastery  of  St.  John  of  Choseboth  is  perched 
above  the  north  bank,  under  a  high,  brown  precipice.  A 
fine  aqueduct  from  the  great  spring  divides  at  this  latter 
place  into  three  channels,  crossing  a  magnificent  bridge 
seventy  feet  high,  and  running  a  total  distance  of  three 
miles  and  three-quarters,  to  a  place  where  the  gorge  de- 
bouches into  the  Jericho  plain.  On  each  side  the  white 
chalk  mountains  tower  up  in  fantastic  peaks,  with  long  knife- 
edged  ridges,  and  hundreds  of  little  conical  points,  with 
deep  torrent-seams  between.  All  is  bare  and  treeless,  as 
at  Mar  Saba.  The  wild  pigeon  makes  its  nest  in  the  "secret 
])laces  of  the  stairs  ''  of  rock  ;  the  black  grackle  suns  its 
golden  wings  above  them ;  the  eagle  soars  higher  still,  and 
over   the  caves  by  the   deep  pools  the  African  kingfisher 


94 


TWENTY-ONE    YEARS'   WORK. 


r 


Mar     Saba. 

flutters ;  the  ibex  also  still  haunts  the  rocks.  Even  in 
autumn  the  murmuring  of  water  is  heard  beneath,  and  the 
stream  was  one  day  swelled  by  a  thunderstorm  in  a  quarter 
of  an  hour,  until  it  became  a  raging  torrent,  in  some  places 
eight  or  ten  feet  deep. 

One  more  recovery.  Is  not  the  site  of  Bcthabara 
dear  to  all  Christians  ?  This  is  the  story^  of  a 
suggestion,  if  not  a  recovery  : 

The  fords  were  collected  and  marked  in  the  natural 
course  of  the  survey,  the  names  carefully  obtained,  and 
every  precaution  taken  to  ensure  their  being  applied  to  the 
right  places.  It  was  not,  however,  until  the  next  winter  that 
I  became  aware  how  valuable  a  result  had  been  obtained. 
Looking  over  the  nomenclature  for  the  purpose  of  making  an 


THE  SURVEY  OF  UESTERN  PALESTINE.  95 

index,  I  was  struck  with  the  name  'Abarah  applying  to  a 
ford.  The  word  means  "  passage,"  or  "  ferry,"  and  is  radi- 
cally the  same  word  found  in  the  name  Bethabara.  I 
looked  'Abarah  out  at  once  on  the  map,  and  found  that  it 
is  one  of  the  main  fords,  just  above  the  place  where  the 
Jalud  river,  flowing  down  the  valley  of  Jezreel  and  by 
Beisan,  debouches  into  Jordan. 

One  cannot  but  look  on  this  as  one  of  the  most  valuable 
discoveries  resulting  from  the  survey ;  and  I  have  not,  as 
yet,  seen  any  argument  directed  against  the  identification 
which  seems  to  shake  it.  It  may  be  said  that  the  name 
'Abarah  is  merely  descriptive,  and  perhaps  applies  to  several 
fords.  That  it  is  descriptive  may  be  granted ;  so  is  the 
name  Bethabara,  or  Bethel,  or  Gibeah,  or  Ramah.  That  it 
is  a  common  name  may  be  safely  denied.  AVe  have 
collected  the  names  of  over  forty  fords,  and  no  other  is 
called  'Abarah  ;  nor  does  the  word  occur  again  in  all  the 
9000  names  collected  by  the  survey  party. 

Nor  do  we  depend  on  the  name  alone.  An  identification 
may  be  defined  as  the  recovery  of  a  site  unknown  to 
Europeans,  but  known  to  the  natives  of  the  country. 
Evidently  places  can  only  be  known  by  their  names,  unless 
we  have  measured  distances  by  which  to  fix  them.  If  in 
England  we  endeavoured  to  recover  an  ancient  site,  and 
knew  the  district  in  which  it  should  occur,  we  should  be 
satisfied  if  we  found  the  ancient  name  applying  to  one  place, 
and  one  only,  in  that  district.  A\'ithout  the  name,  we  should 
still  be  in  doubt.  Does  not  this  apply  to  Palestine  ?  It  is 
true  that  name  alone  will  not  be  sufficient ;  position  must 
be  suitable  also.  No  one  would  try  to  identify  Yarmouth 
in  Norfolk  with  Yarmouth  in  the  Isle  of  \\'ight.  But,  on 
the  other  hand,  without  the  name  it  is  merely  conjecture, 
not  identification,  that  is  possible. 

Here  at  'Abarah  we  have  the  name,  and  nowhere  else,  as 


96  TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'  WORK. 

yet,  has  the  name  been  found ;  the  question  then  arises,  is 
the  position  suitable  ? 

We  speak  commonly  (A  liethabara  as  the  place  of  Our 
Lord's  baptism.  Possibly  it  was  so,  but  the  Gospel  does 
not  say  as  much.  It  is  only  once  mentioned  as  a  place 
where  John  was  baptising,  and  where  certain  events  hap- 
pened on  consecutive  days.  These  events  are  placed  in 
the  Gospel  harmonies  immediately  after  the  Temptation, 
when  Christ  would  aj^pear  to  have  been  returning  from  the 
Desert  (perhaps  east  of  Jordan)  to  Galilee.  Bethabara, 
"  the  house  of  the  ferry,"  was  "  beyond  Jordan ; '"  but  the 
place  of  baptism  was  no  doubt  at  the  ford  or  ferry  itself; 
hence  the  ford  'Abarah  is  the  place  of  interest.  It  cannot 
be  Christian  tradition  which  originates  this  site,  for  Christian 
tradition  has  pointed,  from  the  fourth  century  down  to  the 
present  day,  to  the  fords  of  Jericho  as  the  place  of  baptism 
by  St.  John. 

"  And  the  third  day  there  was  a  marriage  in  Cana  of 
Galilee"  (John  ii.  i).  Here  is  the  controlling  passage. 
The  hostile  critics  of  the  fourth  Gospel  have  taken  hold  of 
it ;  they  have  supposed  the  traditional  site  to  be  un- 
doubtedly the  true  one,  and  have  thence  argued  the 
impossibility  that  in  one  day  Christ  could  have  travelled 
eighty  miles  to  Cana.  To  the  fourth  century  enquirer  the 
difficulty  would  never  have  occurred ;  he  would  have 
answered  at  once  that  Our  Lord  was  miraculously  carried 
from  one  place  to  the  other;  but  the  Gospel  does  not  say 
so,  and  we  should  therefore  look  naturally  for  Bethabara 
within  a  day's  journey  of  Cana.  The  ford  'Abarah  is  about 
twenty -two  miles  in  a  line  from  Kefr  Kenna,  and  no  place 
can  be  found,  on  Jordan,  much  nearer  or  more  easily 
accessible  to  the  neighbourhood  of  Cana. 

I  leave  these  facts  to  the  reader,  asking  him  to  choose 
between  the  difficulties  attendant  ©n  the  traditional  site,  and 


THE  SURVEY  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE.  97 

the  suitability  of  the  new  site,  where  alone  as  yet  the  name 
of  Bethabara  has  been  recovered. 

There  is,  however,  another  point  with  regard  to  Betha- 
bara which  must  not  be  overlooked.  The  oldest  MSS. 
read,  not  Bethabara,  but  Bethany,  beyond  Jordan.  Origen 
observed  this,  yet  chose  the  present  reading,  and  we  can 
hardly  suppose  that  the  early  fathers  of  the  Church  made 
such  an  alteration  without  some  good  reason ;  perhaps  the 
original  text  contained  both  names,  "Bethabara  in  Bethany" 
beyond  Jordan  being  a  possible  reading. 

The  author  of  "  Supernatural  Religion  "  has  made  a  point 
of  this  reading  in  arguing  against  the  authenticity  of  the 
fourth  Gospel.  He  supposes  that  Bethany  beyond  Jordan 
has  been  confused  in  the  Evangelist's  mind  with  Bethany 
near  Jerusalem,  forgetting  that  this  very  Gospel  speaks  of 
the  latter  place  as  "nigh  unto  Jerusalem,  about  fifteen 
furlongs  off"  (John  xi.  18).  The  assumption  of  the 
confusion  is  quite  gratuitous.  Bethania,  meaning  "  soft 
soil,"  was  the  well-known  form  used  in  the  time  of  Christ,  of 
the  old  name  Bashan,  which  district  was  in  Peraea,  or  the 
country  beyond  Jordan. 

If  Bethabara  be  a  true  reading,  the  place  should  thus 
most  probably  be  sought  in  Bethania,  and  the  ford  should 
therefore  lead  over  co  Bashan.  This  again  strengthens  the 
case  for  the  'Abarah  ford,  which  is  near  the  hills  of  Bashan, 
whereas  the  Jericho  fords  are  far  away,  leading  over  towards 
Gilead  and  Moab. 

Again,  to  quote  from  a  paper  called  "Some  of  the 
Biblical  Gains  due  to  the  New  Survey,"  published  in 
the  Quarterly  Statement  o(  ]anuaTy,  1881  : 

Geographical  discoveries  of  remarkable  interest  and  value 
are  at  once  recognised  by  those  who  compare  the  Survey 
Map  with  former  maps  of  Palestine.     The  Sea  of  Galilee 


98 


TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'   WORK. 


proves  to  have  a  depression  nearly  loo  feet  greater  than 
was  formerly  supposed.  The  courses  of  the  main  affluents 
of  Jordan  on  the   west  are   entirely  different   from  those 


Sea  of  Galilee. 

previously  shown.  The  Crocodile  River  springs  from  a 
source  formerly  unsuspected.  Villages  have  been  trans- 
posed from  one  side  to  the  other  of  great  boundary  valleys, 
forty  fords  of  Jordan  are  now  known  where  only  four  were 
previously  marked.  Ten  thousand  modern  names  occur  on 
the  map,  of  which  nearly  nine-tenths  were  previously  un- 
known. Important  notes  as  to  the  geological  structure  of 
the  country,  its  physical  features,  cultivation,  soil,  cUmate. 
and  natural  products  have  been  collected,  and  the  traditions 
and  customs  of  its  inhabitants  have  been  noted.  And  from 
an  archseological  point  of  view  our  information  as  to  the 
dates,  the  positions,  and  the  nature  of  the  existing  ruins,  as 
to  the  character  of  the  peasant  language,  and  as  to  the 
manners,  customs,  and  superstitions  of  the  rustic  population 
has  been  enormously  increased. 


THE  SURVEY  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE.  99 

There  is  another  peculiarity  with  regard  to  Bibhcal 
geography  which  lends  additional  interest  and  importance 
to  the  subject.  Palestine  is  a  little  country,  the  length  of 
which  might  be  traversed  by  rail  in  six  hours  and  its  breadth 
in  less  than  two.  The  six  hundred  Bible  sites  which  are  to 
be  found  within  its  limits  are  thus  on  an  average  to  be 
sought  within  an  area  of  ro  square  miles  a  piece.  When 
David  fled  farthest  from  Saul  he  was  yet  not  more  than  40 
miles  from  Bethlehem,  nor  more  than  50  from  Gibeah  where 
Saul  abode.  Most  of  the  famous  deeds  of  Samson  took 
place  in  a  district  containing  an  area  of  less  than  40  square 
miles.  Jerusalem  itself  covered  at  the  height  of  its  pros- 
perity not  more  than  330  acres,  including  30  acres  of  the 
Temple  enclosure.  The  closeness  of  the  topography  while 
on  the  one  hand  rendering  its  recovery  more  difficult,  lends 
on  the  other  a  wonderful  vividness  and  reality  to  the  ancient 
episodes  of  Hebrew  history.  At  Hebron  we  may  almost 
trace  each  step  of  Abner's  way  from  the  Well  of  Sirah  to  his 
doom  at  the  city  gate.  By  Michmash  we  may  gaze  on  the 
very  rock  up  which  Jonathan  climbed.  At  Shechem  we 
may  stand  on  the  brink  of  Jacob's  well,  in  the  very  foot 
prints  of  Christ.  We  are  not  content  to  know  that  Caper- 
naum was  north  of  Tiberias,  and  insist  on  fixing  the  exact 
spot  now  disputed  by  sites  only  about  2\  miles  distant  one 
from  the  other.  Fierce  controversies  arise  between  those 
who  place  Cana  4  miles  north  of  the  traditional  site  and 
those  who  support  the  latter  view.  Topography,  in  short, 
takes  the  place  in  Palestine  of  geography,  and  for  this  reason 
a  plan  rather  than  a  map  is  required. 

Commencing,  then,  with  the  immigration  of  Abraham 
from  beyond  Euphrates,  the  first  topographical  question 
which  arises  is  that  of  the  e.xact  position  of  the  royal 
Canaanite  city  of  Ai.     (Sheet  XVII.) 

The  situation  of  this  ancient  town,   afterwards  entirely 

G   2 


100  TIVENTY-ONE   YEARS'   WORK. 

destroyed  by  Joshua,  is  minutely  described  in  the  Bible. 
It  was  "  beside  "  Bethel  (Joshua  xii.  9),  and  the  Hebrew 
has  here  the  force  of  "  close  to,"  which  appears  fatal  to  the 
claims  of  various  sites  south  and  east  of  Michmash  (or  more 
than  6  miles  from  Bethel)  which  have  been  proposed.  Ai 
lay  also  east  of  Bethel  (Joshua  viii.  9)  with  a  ravine  to  the 
north  (verse  11)  and  a  desert  to  the  east  (verse  15),  while 
to  the  west  was  a  place  fitted  for  the  ambush  which  the 
Israelites  set.  These  indications  were  so  definite  that  but 
little  doubt  could  exist  as  to  the  approximate  situation  of 
the  town.  Travellers  visited  and  described  a  ruin  called 
et  Tell,  "  the  mound,"  which  seems  first  to  have  been 
pointed  out  by  Van  de  Velde,  and  the  somewhat  fanciful 
conjecture  was  advanced  that  this  place  derived  its  name 
trom  the  fact  that  Joshua  made  of  Ai  "a  heap  {Tell  in  the 
Hebrew)  for  ever"  (Joshua  viii.  28). 

To  this  view  there  were,  however,  objections.  There  is 
no  certain  indication  that  the  hillock  of  et  Tell  was  ever  the 
site  of  a  city,  and  the  expression  "  for  ever "  should  be 
taken  rather  as  an  indication  of  the  early  date  of  the  Book 
of  Joshua,  for  Ai  reappears  as  a  town  in  the  later  Jewish 
books  (Nehemiah  xi.  31  ;  Isaiah  x.  28).  Fortunately  the 
survey  party  were  able  to  suggest  a  better  explanation 
through  the  discovery  of  the  ancient  ruins  of  Haiyan 
immediately  south  of  et  Tell.  The  name  recalls  the  Aina  of 
Josephus  (equivalent  to  Ai,  Ant.  v.  i,  9),  and  the  existence 
of  large  rock-hewn  reservoirs  with  tombs  and  cisterns  proves 
•ihe  site  to  be  of  importance  and  antiquity.  To  the  north  is 
a  rugged  ravine,  to  the  east  the  desolate  desert  of  Bethaven. 
To  the  west  is  Bethel,  2  miles  distant,  and  between  the  two 
sites  is  the  open  ravine  called  "  the  valley  of  the  city,"  where 
unseen,  yet  close  at  hand,  the  ambush  may  have  lain  con- 
cealed beneath  the  low  cliffs  or  among  the  olive  groves  after 
creeping  across  from  the  northern  valley  behind  the  rough 
rocky  swell  which  runs  out  to  the  mound  of  et  Tell. 


THE  SURVEY  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE.  io[ 

It  was  from  the  flat  ridge  which  rises  from  between  Bethel 
and  Ai  that  Abraham  and  Lot  looked  down  on  the  Cities  of 
the  Plain  and  on  the  "  circle  "  of  Jordan,  and  the  view  from 
this  point  over  the  desert  ranges  and  the  Jordan  valley  to 
Nebo  and  Moab  is  still  striking  and  picturesque. 

As  regards  the  position  of  these  famous  cities  which 
Josephus  believed  to  have  lain  beneath  the  waters  of  the 
Dead  Sea,  but  which  modern  students  place  in  the  Jericho 
Plain  or  in  the  corresponding  basin  (Ghor  es  Seiseban)  east 
of  Jordan,  the  survey  results  were  rather  of  negative  than  of 
positive  value.  A  very  close  and  careful  examination  of  the 
ground  showed  that  no  traces  of  the  sites  of  any  towns 
occur  between  Jericho  and  the  Dead  Sea  shore,  the  re- 
maining ruins  belonging  only  to  medieval  monastic  estab- 
lishments, and  that  no  springs  suitable  for  the  supply  of 
even  small  villages  exist,  or  probably  ever  existed,  in  this 
district.  Thus,  although  an  apparently  successful  attempt 
has  been  made  by  Dr.  Selah  Merrill  to  recover  the  site  of 
Zoar,  our  information  as  to  the  other  four  cities,  the  destruc- 
tion of  which  is  described  in  the  Book  of  Genesis  (chapter 
xix),  remains  indecisive.  Captain  Conder  has,  however, 
pointed  out  that  the  term  "plain"  {Ciccar)  is  applied  in  the 
Bible  to  the  Jordan  valley  as  far  north  as  Succoth,  which 
renders  it  not  improbable  that  Admah,  one  of  the  lost  cities, 
is  identical  with  Adam,  a  city  of  Jordan  (Joshua  iii.  ii),  the 
name  of  which  still  survives  at  the  Damieh  ford  east  of 
Shechem.     (Sheet  XV.) 

Among  the  nations  inhabiting  Palestine  in  the  time  of 
Abraham  the  Kenites — a  tribe  as  yet  unidentified — are 
mentioned  (Genesis  xv.  19).  They  inhabited  a  strong 
fortress  in  the  southern  part  of  the  country  and  survived 
until  the  time  of  David.  Captain  Conder  proposes  to 
identify  this  site  with  the  town  of  Cain  which  Van  de  Velde 
found    in    the   present   ruin    of     Yekhi.      This   affords   an 


I02  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'   WORK. 

interesting  illustration  of  the  Old  Testament  narrative. 
Yekin  perched  on  the  edge  of  a  steep  cliff  dominating  the 
desert  plateau  west  of  the  Dead  Sea,  is  one  of  the  most 
conspicuous  objects  against  the  sky-line  looking  from  the 
east.  To  Balaam,  on  the  summit  of  Nebo,  it  was  in  full 
view,  and  the  words  of  his  prophecy  thus  receive  fresh  force 
and  significance,  "  strong  is  thy  dwelling  place,  and  thou 
puttest  thy  nest  in  a  rock."     (Sheet  XXI.) 

The  history  of  the  later  Patriarchs  Isaac,  Jacob,  and  his 
sons  is  mainly  connected  with  the  district  called  Negeb  or 
"  dry  "  in  the  Bible.  Beersheba,  Gerar,  Rehoboth,  and  the 
unknown  sites  of  Esek  and  Sitnah  are^all  to  be  found  in 
this  part  of  the  country.  The  reason  of  this  choice  of 
country  is  plainly  shown  by  the  survey.  The  high  hills  of 
Hebron,  with  their  steep,  rocky  valleys,  rich  soil,  and 
numerous  springs,  are  suitable  for  agriculture  and  the  growth 
of  the  olive  and  the  vine  ;  the  low  chalky  hills  and  the 
healthy  Beersheba  plateau  form  a  pastoral  district  still 
capable  of  supporting  large  flocks  and  herds.  The  Hittite 
mountains  round  Kirjath  Arba  (or  Hebron)  were  already 
inhabited  by  an  agricultural  population  in  the  time  of 
Abraham,  and  the  nomadic  Hebrews  found  a  suitable  home 
in  the  pasture  lands  of  the  Philistines  and  Amalekites  in  the 
"  dry  district,"  of  which  the  distinctive  character  remains 
unchanged.  Where  the  Patriarchs  once  spread  their  tents 
the  great  tribes  of  the  Azazimeh  and  Henajereh  now 
pasture  their  flocks ;  and  in  the  mountains  of  the  sons  of 
Heth  the  modern  Fellahin  lead  an  agricultural  life. 

The  site  of  Gerar  was  discovered  before  the  survey,  but 
was  visited  by  the  party  from  Gaza.  There  is  little  to 
describe  beyond  a  gigantic  mound  on  the  side  of  a  deep 
broad  watercourse  in  the  midst  of  rolling  plains. 

The  question  of  most  interest  was  that  of  rediscovering 
the  wells  which  Isaac  dug  again  in  the  valley  of  Gerar  after 


THE  SURVEY  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE. 


103 


those  made  by  Abraham  had  been  filled  in  by  the  Philis- 
tines (Genesis  xxv.  18).  No  great  masonry  wells  such  as 
those  of  Beersheba  were  discovered  ;  and,  indeed,  at  Beer- 


Abraham's  Well,  Beersheba. 


sheba  itself  the  survey  party  were  able  to  show  that  the 
masonry  once  thought  to  have  been  the  work  of  Abraham 
dates  only  from  Arab  times.  It  was  ascertained,  however, 
that  a    strong  underground    stream  flows  down    the  great 


104  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'  WORK. 

valley  which,  rising  near  Hebron,  runs  southwards  to 
Beersheba,  and  thence  westwards  to  the  sea,  passing  by  the 
site  of  Gerar.  The  Arabs  camping  round  this  latter  site  are 
in  the  habit  of  making  excavations  in  the  bed  of  the  valley, 
from  which  the  water  wells  up,  and  which  are  called  by  the 
Hebrew  name  Hiifr^  or  "  pit."  If  the  wells  dug  by  Abraham 
were  of  this  description  they  might  easily  have  been  filled  in 
by  the  Philistines  and  reopened  by  Isaac  ;  while  the  loss  of 
the  sites  of  Esek  and  Sitnah  is  on  the  same  supposition 
naturally  explained. 

The  later  books  of  the  Pentateuch  contain  but  little 
information  concerning  the  topography  of  Palestine  proper. 
A  few  notes  of  interest  may,  however,  be  here  given  in 
connection  with  the  survey. 

According  to  the  Law  of  Moses  the  scapegoat  was  set 
free  in  the  wilderness  (Leviticus  xvi.  9),  but  at  a  later  period 
an  evasion  or  modification  of  this  command  was  introduced 
by  the  Jews  ;  the  goat  was  conducted  to  a  mountain  named 
Tzuk  situated  at  a  distance  of  ten  sabbath  days'  journey,  or 
about  6^  English  miles  from  Jerusalem.  At  this  place  the 
Judsean  desert  was  supposed  to  commence,  and  the  man  in 
whose  charge  the  goat  w^as  sent  out,  while  setting  him  free, 
was  instructed  to  push  the  unhappy  beast  down  the  slope  of 
the  mountain  side,  which  was  so  steep  as  to  ensure  the 
death  of  the  goat,  whose  bones  were  broken  by  the  fall. 
The  reason  of  this  barbarous  custom  was  that  on  one 
occasion  the  scapegoat  returned  to  Jerusalem  after  being  set 
free,  which  was  considered  such  an  evil  omen  that  its  recur- 
rence was  prevented  for  the  future  by  the  death  of  the  goat, 
as  described  in  the  tract  Yoma  of  the  Mishna. 

The  distance  given  between  Tzuk  and  Jerusalem  seems  to 
indicate  a  lofty  hill  top  now  called  el  Ahititdr,  "  the  watch- 
tower,"  which  dominates  the  desert  west  of  Jericho.  An 
ancient  road  leads  from  Jerusalem  to  this  point,  and  beside 


THE  SURVEY  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE.  105 

the  road  is  an  ancient  well  preserving  the  name  Tzuk  in  the 
Arab  form  Sctk.  The  eastern  slope  of  the  hill  is  steep,  and 
falls  unbroken  to  the  stony  valley  beneath.  The  goat,  dashed 
on  the  rocks,  in  its  fall  must  inevitably  have  been  destroyed, 
while  the  mountain  may  well  claim  to  be  considered  the 
entrance  to  the  dreary  desert  which  stretches  beneath  its 
summit.*     (Sheet  XVIII.) 

Another  discovery  of  some  interest  was  the  identification 
by  the  Survey  party  of  one  of  the  species  of  deer  mentioned 
in  the  Pentateuch.  In  the  English  version  the  Hebrew 
word  Yakhmor  is  rendered  "  fallow  deer,"  but  this  interpre- 
tation has  not  been  accepted  by  modern  scholars.  It  is  now 
proved  that  the  roebuck  as  well  as  the  fallow  deer  is  to  be 
found  in  the  Carmel  thickets,  and  it  has  been  ascertained 
that  the  old  Hebrew  name  Yakhmor  is  still  applied  by  the 
natives  to  the  former  species — the  English  roebuck. 

The  researches  of  Egyptologists  have  thrown  considerable 
hght  on  the  condition  of  Palestine  and  Syria  during  the  time 
of  the  Hebrew  bondage  in  Egypt  and  during  the  time  of  the 
Judges.  The  records  of  the  great  conquerors  Thothmes 
III  and  Rameses  II  give  long  lists  of  places  situated  in  the 
Holy  Land  and  in  the  country  of  the  Hittites.  The  reason 
why  the  children  of  Israel  entered  Palestine  from  the  east 
after  their  long  sojourn  in  the  Sinaitic  desert  appears  to 
have  been  that  the  Egyptian  Government  was  then  firmly 
established  in  the  Plain  of  Sharon.  This  agrees  with  the 
Bible  account  of  the  Philistine  immigration  into  the  southern 
plains  from  Egypt,  and  in  this,  as  in  so  many  other  instances, 
the  records  of  the  Egyptian  monuments  fully  coincide  with 
the  history  of  the  Old  Testament. 

Attempts  have  been  made  by  Mariette,  Brugsch,  de  Roug^, 
Chabas,    and   other    Egyptologists   to    identify    the    towns 

*  In  1 88 1  Captain  Conder  revisited  this  spot,  and  found  the  actual 
name  "6'wX'"  still  existing. 


Io6  TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'   WORK. 

mentioned  in  the  records  of  Egyptian  conquests  in  Pales- 
tine. Many  have  been  recovered  with  certainty,  but  it  was 
not  until  the  Survey  had  been  completed  that  it  became 
possible  to  study  the  subject  exhaustively.  Many  existing 
ancient  sites  not  mentioned  in  the  Bible  are  found  to  agree 
exactly  with  the  Egyptian  lists,  and  the  probable  correctness 
of  the  identifications  "thus  obtained  is  evinced  by  the 
ease  with  which  the  lists  are  shown  to  preserve  a  proper  con- 
secutive order,  while  the  districts  occur  along  the  very  line 
of  march  which  we  know,  from  other  inscriptions,  to  have 
have  been  followed  by  Thothmes  and  Rameses.  The  num- 
ber of  identifications  proposed  within  the  country  covered 
by  the  Survey  may  also  be  contrasted  with  our  almost  entire 
ignorance  of  the  topography  of  the  Hittite  towns  lying  north 
of  Damascus,  of  which  scarcely  six  are  known  out  of  a  total 
of  over  loo  noticed  on  the  monuments. 

The  Book  of  Joshua  is  the  central  focus  of  Biblical  topo- 
graphy, and  the  elucidation  of  this  book  has  been  materially 
advanced  by  the  survey.  Several  important  cities  before 
unknown  have  now  been  fixed  with  considerable  certitude, 
and  the  boundaries  of  the  tribes  have  been  traced  in  a 
satisfactory  manner. 

The  Survey  officers  were  able  to  confirm  entirely  the  dis- 
coveries of  M.  Clermont  Ganneau  respecting  the  sites  of 
AduUum  and  Gezer,  and  to  these  important  towns  they  add 
the  identification  of  Hazor  and  Debir,  with  a  large  number 
of  less  famous  names.  The  site  of  Gilgal,  discovered  east 
of  Jericho  by  the  German  traveller  Herr  Schokke  was  fixed 
by  the  surveyors,  who  found  the  name  Jiljidieh  still  sur- 
viving. The  site  of  Makkedah  fixed  by  Colonel  Warren, 
R.E.,  at  the  present  village  el  Mugkdr,  "  the  caves,"  has 
been  adopted  by  the  surveyors,  who  found  that  at  this  site 
only  of  all  the  possible  sites  for  Makkedah  in  the  Philistine 
plain  do  caves  {see  Joshua  x.  22)  still  exist.     The  position 


THE  SURVEY  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE.  107 


m-M-: 


Gilgal. 


also  agrees  well  with  the  identification  ot  the  towns 
Gederoth,  Beth-Dagon,  and  Naamah  mentioned  in  the  same 
group  with  Makkedah.     (Sheet  XVI.) 

The  site  of  Joshua's  tomb  has  long  been  sought,  the  iden- 
tification with  the  rock  sepulchre  at  Tibneh^  north-east  of 
Lydda,  being  unsatisfactory  for  several  reasons.  Joshua 
was  buried  at  a  place  called  Timnath  Heres,  in  Mount 
Ephraim,  and  there  is  a  remarkable  consent  of  Jewish, 
Samaritan,  and  Christian  tradition,  traceable  from  the 
fourth  century  downwards,  which  points  to  a  village  called 
Kefr  Hdris,  south  of  Shechem,  as  representing  the  burial 
place  of  Joshua.  Captain  Conder  ascertained  that  this 
tradition  is  still  extant  among  the  Samaritans,  and  although 
it  appears  little  understood  by  the  peasantry,  a  sacred  shrine 
exists  outside  the  village  of  Kefr  Haris  to  which  the  name 
Neby  Lush' a  (no  doubt  a  corruption  of  Yehusha,  or  Joshua), 
is  applied.  Ancient  tradition  also  places  the  tomb  of  Nun 
at  this  same  village,  and  a  second  sacred  place  called  Neby 


loS 


TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'   WORK. 


Nun  was  found  close  to  the  supposed  site  of  the  tomb  ot 
Joshua. 

The  Priests  Eleazar  and  Phinehas,  the  successors  of 
Aaron,  were  also  buried  in  Mount  Ephraim.  The  traditional 
site  was  sought  in  vain  by  the  great  American  explorer, 
Robinson,  but  the  surveyors  were  more  fortunate,  and  have 
visited  and  minutely  described  the  tombs  which  according 
to  Jewish,  Samaritan,  and  Christian  tradition  alike,  are  said 
to    be    those    of  the   sons    of   Aaron.     The  monument  of 


Tomb  of  Phinehas. 


Phinehas  appears  to  be  of  great  antiquity,  but  that  of 
Eleazar  has  l)cen  rebuilt.  They  are  both  close  to  the 
village  of  Awertah,  which  the  Samaritans  identify  with  the 
Biblical  Gibeah  Phinehas  (Joshua  xxiv.  33).  (Sheets  XIV. 
and  XL) 

There  is  no  room  in  a  paper  like  the  present  to  go  very 
deeply  into  the  question  of  the  boundaries  of  'the  tribes. 
Several  important  Survey  discoveries  have  been  cordially 
accepted   by   students   of    the    subject,    and   several   very 


THE  SURVEY  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE.  109 


no  TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'  WORK. 


imi)ortant  modifications  have  resulted  from  the  survey  in 
the  Hnes  of  the  borders  as  formerly  laid  down.  The  general 
results  of  the  new  investigation  appear  to  be  as  follows  : — 

ist.  I'he  boundaries  are  shown  to  be  almost  entirely 
natural — rivers,  ravines,  ridges,  and  the  watershed  lines  of 
the  country. 

2nd.  To  many  of  the  tribes  were  assigned  distinct  dis- 
tricts of  the  country.  Issachar  had  the  great  plain,  Zebulon 
the  low  hills  north  of  it.  The  sons  of  Joseph  held  the  wild 
central  mountains,  and  Naphtali  those  of  Upper  Galilee. 
Dan  and  Asher  occupied  the  rich  Shephelah  (or  lowland) 
and  maritime  plain.  Simeon  inhabited  the  desert,  while 
Judah,  holding  the  largest  share  of  territory,  had  both 
mountain  and  Shephelah  plain  and  desert  in  its  portion. 

3rd.  The  enumeration  of  towns  follows  always  an  order 
roughly  consecutive,  and  all  those  of  one  district  are  men- 
tioned together. 

4th.  The  proportion  ot  territory  to'  population  is  calcu- 
lated to  vary  exacdy  in  accordance  with  the  fertility  of  the 
district.  Taking  as  a  basis  the  tribe  populations  (Numbers 
xxvi.),  it  appears  that  the  ancient  populations  must  have 
been  most  dense  exactly  in  those  districts  in  which  the 
greatest  number  of  ancient  ruins  is  now  found,  and  which 
are  still  most  thickly  inhabited. 

Among  the  most  important  discoveries  concerning  the 
tribe  boundaries  are  the  following:  the  waters  of  Nephtoah 
(Joshua  XV,  9)  are  now  placed  at  the  pools  of  Solomon  (so 
called),  besides  which  the  spring  'Atari,  the  Talmudic  Etam, 
or  Nephtoah,  still  exists.  Formerly  they  were  identified 
with  the  spring  near  Lifta,west  of  Jerusalem,  probably  Eleph 
of  Benjamin  ;  but  this  theory  renders  the  topography  very 
confused,  whereas  the  new  proposal  when  joined  to  the  new 
identification  of  Kirjath  Jearim  makes  the  boundary  line  of 
Judah  follow  a  natural  watershed. 


THE  SUR  VE  Y  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE.  1 1 1 

On  the  north-west  border  of  Benjamin,  Ataroth  Adar 
{ed  Ddrieh),  and  Archi  {^Ain  Arik)  have  been  recovered  in 
exact  accordance  with  the  words  of  the  Bible  (Joshua 
xviii,  13),  which  define  the  position  of  the  former  with  the 
greatest  minuteness.  The  course  of  the  brook  Kanah, 
(Wady  Kanah)  has  now,  for  the  first  time,  been  correctly 
laid  down,  thus  fixing  the  boundaries  of  Ephraim  and 
Manasseh ;  and  the  discovery  of  Rabbith  and  other  sites 
has,  for  the  first  time,  defined  the  border  of  Issachar.  Many 
new  identifications  are  proposed  for  the  towns  of  Dan  and 
Asher,  and  a  group  of  places  belonging  to  Napthali  has 
been  fixed  in  an  apparently  satisfactory  manner  in  the 
plateau  immediately  west  of  the  Sea  of  Galilee. 

Let  us  now  pass  to  the  elucidation  which  has  been 

effected  through  the  Survey,  of  the  episodical  histories 

of  the  Book  of  Judges, — the  adventures   of    Caleb, 

Sisera,  Gideon,  and  Samson. 

The  site  of  the  city  Debir,  for  the  conquest  of  which  the 
valiant  Othniel  was  rewarded  by  the  hand  of  Achsah, 
Caleb's  daughter,  had  long  been  sought  in  vain.  Many 
towns  of  the  group  surrounding  it  had  been  identified.  It 
was  known  to  stand  in  the  Negeb,  or  "  dry,"  country  south 
of  Hebron,  and  that  certain  springs  should  be  found  not  far 
off.  The  name  signifies  "back,"  suggesting  that  the  city 
stood  on  a  ridge,  and  Captain  Conder  was  the  first  to  point 
out  the  probable  identity  with  the  ancient  \\\\:xgQ  DJidheriyeh 
("of  the  back"),  standing  in  a  conspicuous  position  among 
ancient  tombs  and  quarries  close  to  the  other  towns  of  the 
groups,  while,  at  a  short  distance  to  the  north,  a  valley  was 
discovered  full  of  springs,  some  on  the  hill  side,  some  in  the 
bed  of  the  ravine,  answering  in  a  most  satisfactory  manner 
to  the  "upper  and  lower  springs"  for  which  Achsah  be- 
sought her  father  (Judges  i.  15).     (Sheet  XXV.) 


112 


TWENTY-ONE   YEARS^'   WORK. 


Ed  Dhaheriyeh. 


Among  the  graphic  episodes  of  Hebrew  history,  there  is, 
perhaps,  none  more  picturesque  than  that  relating  to 
Gideon's  victory  over  the  Midianites.  The  general  scene  is 
known,  the  Valley  of  Jezreel,  now  Wady  Jalud  ;  but  the 
details  of  the  minute  topography  are  still  obscured  through 
the  loss  of  many  sites  east  of  Jordan.  Zererath,  and  Tabbath, 
Bethabara,  Penuel,  Nobah,  and  Karkor  (Judges  vii.  22 ; 
viii.  11)  are  still  uncertain,  and  it  is  only  possible  to  say  that 
pursuit  extended  from  some  point  below  Jezreel  to  the 
mountains  east  of  Jericho. 

The  survey  throws  light  on  the  position  of  Abel  Meholah, 
and  Succoth  is  identified  at  Tell  Der'ala.  Suggestions  may 
also  be  offered  for  the  situation  of  the  famous  "  Spring  of 
Trembling  "  (En  Harod),  where  Gideon  selected  his  band, 
and  light  may  be  thrown  on  the  curious  notice  of  a  ISIount 
Gilead,  west  of  Jordan,  in  the  same  direction. 


THE  SURVEY  OE  WES  TEEN  PALESTINE.  113 


hV   7- 


H 


114  TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'   WORK. 

It  is  clear  trom  the  account  given  by  Jose])hu.s  that  Harod 
is  to  be  sought  not  far  from  Jordan,  and  Captain  Conder 
has  suggested  that  the  name  'Ain  el  Jem'ain,  "  Spring  of  the 
two  Companies,"  ajjplying  to  an  abundant  stream  at  the  foot 
of  the  eastern  slope  of  Mount  Gilboa,  may  retain  a  trace  of 
the  memory  of  Gideon's  famous  selection  of  three  hundred 
tried  men,  who,  as  able  to  satisfy  their  thirst  by  water  taken 
in  the  palm  of  the  hand,  were  indicated  as  fitter  to  endure 
the  trial  of  a  long  and  rapid  i)ursuit  than  the  remaining 
multitude  who  drank  more  freely. 

As  regards  the  name  Gilead  (Judges  vii.  3),  it  has  been 
found  that  from  an  early  period  the  name  Jalud  or  Jelden 
has  applied  to  the  stream  flowing  down  the  Valley  of  Jezreel, 
and  it  is  suggested  that  the  name  Gilead,  applying  according 
to  the  passage  above  cited  to  a  mountain  near  this  stream  is 
the  true  Hebrew  form  of  the  modern  Arab  Jalud  and  of  the 
Jelden  which  is  mentioned  in  Egyptian  documents. 

A  site  long  sought  in  connection  with  the  history  of  Sam- 
son, and  also  with  the  succeeding  episode  of  the  Danite 
conquest  of  Laish,  is  that  of  the  Mahaneh  Dan,  or  "  Camp- 
mg  place  of  Dan,"  which  was  "  behind  "  {i.e.,  west  of)  Kir- 
jath  Jearim  (Judges  xviii.  12),  and  near  Zoreah  and  Eshtaol. 
These  indications  could  not  be  reconciled  with  the  site 
usually  proposed  for  Kirjath  Jearim.  It  appeared  probable 
that  the  wide  corn  valley  east  of  Samson's  home  was  the 
camping  ground  in  question,  but  this  is  eight  miles  from 
Kuriet  el  'Anab,  where  Dr.  Robinson  places  the  famous  city 
Kirjath  Jearim,  the  resting  place  for  so  many  years  of  the  Ark. 

It  has  now  been  pointed  out  that  this  latter  identification 
rests  on  no  surer  basis  than  a  fifth  century  tradition  of 
foreign  origin,  and  wc  are  left  free  to  seek  the  "  town  of 
thickets"  elsewhere.  The  survey  identification  points  to  a 
ruin  on  a  thickly  covered  ridge  amongst  copses  and  thickets, 
to  which  the  name  'Erma  still  applies,  corresponding  to  the 


THE  SURVEY  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE.  115 


latest  form  Arim,  which  took  the  place  of  the  original 
Ya'rim  or  Jearim  (Ezra  ii.  25).  This  ruin  is  distant  only 
three  miles  from  the  great  valley  towards  which  it  looks 
down.  It  lies  close  to  the  border  of  the  lower  hills  and  the 
high  Judean  mountains,  and  it  shows  evidence  of  having 
been  an  ancient  site. 

Close  to  the  same  vicinity  the  survey  party  fixed  the 
situation  of  Deir  Aban,  "  The  Convent  of  the  Stone,"  which 
St.  Jerome  identifies  with  the  site  of  Ebenezer,  "The Stone 
of  Help,"  a  name  so  familiar  to  our  ears  as  that  of  the 
monument  raised  by  Samuel  to  commemorate  the  great 
victory  over  the  Philistines  (i  Samuel  vii.  12),  and  probably 
marking  the  final  limit  of  the  pursuit. 

The  situation  of  the  site  seems  to  render  the  traditional 
view  not  improbably  correct,  for  the  village  stands  at  the 
mouth  of  the  great  valley,  down  which  undoubtedly  the 
Philistine  hosts  were  driven,  and  just  at  the  border  which, 
until  the  time  of  Solomon,  appears  to  have  divided  the  land 
of  the  Philistines  from  the  territory  actually  occupied  by  the 
sons  of  Judah.     (Sheet  XVII.) 

The  history  of  Saul  is  elucidated  by  the  survey  in  the  re- 
covery of  Bezek,  the  mustering  place  of  Israel  (i  Samuel 
xi,  8).  Jerome  and  Eusebius  place  this  site,  which  is  known 
to  have  been  near  the  centre  of  the  country,  at  a  certain 
distance  from  Shechem  on  the  road  to  Beisan.  At  this 
exact  distance  on  the  ancient  road  the  ruin  Ibz'ik  occurs  on 
the  survey,  and  this  is  a  case  which,  if  we  take  into  con- 
sideration Mr.  Grove's  argument  on  the  subject  before  this 
discovery  had  been  made,  may  fairly  be  considered  to  be 
past  dispute  the  recovery  of  a  long  lost  site.     (Sheet  XII.) 

The  exact  site  of  the  great  cliffs  Seneh  and  Bozez, 
which  Jonathan  climbed  with  his  armour  bearer  {\  Sanuiel 
xiv.  4),  has  been  pointed  out  by  the  surveyors  through 
the  aid  of  a  remarkably  exact  description  by  Josephus   of 

II  2 


ii6  TWENTY-ONE   VEINS'   WORK. 


the  site  of  the  I'liilislinc  c.un]).  The  name  Scnch,  "  thorn 
hush,"  given  at  a  later  period  to  the  intervening  valley  (as 
noticed  by  Josei)luis)  is  still  recognizable  in  the  present 
Arab  name  of  the  same  s])lendid  gorge  Wady  Sira'eimt,  or 
"  The  Valley  of  the  Little  Thorntree."  The  name  Eozez, 
or  ■'  shining,"'  is  explained  by  the  fact  that  it  is  that  of  the 
northern  cliff  crowned  by  a  mound  of  white  chalky  marl, 
presenting  a  shining  and  conspicuous  aspect,  contrasting 
strongly  during  the  daytime  with  the  dark  shadow  of  the 
southern  precipice. 

The  fixing  of  this  famous  s])ot  depends  to  a  certain 
extent  on  the  •■ight  allocation  oi  (libeah  (of  Saul  or  of 
Benjamin),  a  site  which  Dr.  Robinson  transferred  to  the 
old  beacon  i)latform  called  Tell  el  Fiil.  There  is  not 
here  si)ace  for  the  arguments  connected  with  this  question, 
l)ut  it  may  be  noted  that  the  Survey  shows  that  Tell  el 
I'Til  cannot  have  been  the  site  of  an  ancient  town. 

The  romantic  adventures  of  David  during  llie  time  of 
his  exile  and  wanderings  have  received  much  important 
illustration  from  the  results  of  the  survey.  Elah,  Sechu, 
Adullam,  (iath,  Hareth,  Hachilah,  Sela-ham-Mahlekoth, 
and  Choresh  Ziph  are  now  pointed  out  with  some  degree  of 
certainty.  Sites  for  the  capital  of  the  Cherethites,  Ziklag, 
( I  Samuel  xxx,  14)  and  for  Nob  have  been  jjroposed.  Visiting 
the  ruins  of  the  "hold"  of  .\dullam  {'Aid-el-Ma),  first 
identified  by  M.  Clermont  (lanneau,  the  surve}-ors  Ibund  a 
cave  close  to  the  niins  of  the  ancient  town,  a  cave  suffi- 
ciently large  to  have  been  the  habitation  ot  David  while  his 
band  were  ^rarrisoning  the  hold  or  fortress.  Not  many 
miles  away  lies  the  broad  corn  vale  where  the  she])herd  boy 
slew  the  giant  with  one  of  the  smooth  pebbles  which  still 
nil  the  bed  of  tile  winter  torrent  tlowing  thnjugh  the  valley. 
The  various  hidiiij;  places  to  which  the  future  King  of 
Israel  retired  o(  <  ur  in  consecutive  order,  each  south  of  the 


THE  SURVEY  OF  WESTERX  PALESTINE. 


17 


Wady  Suweinit  (Rock  Kiiunion?] 


Ii8  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'   WORK. 

other,  each  further  irom  his  native  town,  each  in  a  country 
more  wildly  desolate,  more  difficult  of  access  than  that 
surrouncHng  the  preceding  strongholds.  The  probable  site 
of  the  "Cliff  of  Divisions,"  Sela-ham-Mahlekoth,  is  the  pre- 
sent W  ady  Malfiky  south  of  Hachilah  {el  Kola/i),  and  close 
to  the  site  of  Maon  {M'ahi).  Here,  in  full  sight  of  the 
hunter,  but  protected  by  the  mighty  precipices  of  the  gorge, 
David  was  rescued  by  the  sudden  Philistine  invasion  which 
compelled  Saul  to  retreat  just  as  the  prey  appeared  to  be 
within  his  grasp  (i  Samuel  xxiii.  26). 

Among  the  most  vexed  questions  of  the  later  episode  of 
David's  flight  before  Absalom  was  that  of  the  site  of  Bahu- 
rim  (2  Samuel  xvi.  5),  where  the  spies  lay  hid  in  the  cistern 
covered   by   the  corn    (2    Samuel    xvii.    7).     It  has    been 
assumed  that  David's  flight  across  Olivet  was  directed  along 
the    road  leading  by  Bethany,  but    Bahurim  belonged  to 
Benjamin,    and  was  identified  by  the  Jews  of  the  fourth 
century  {see  the  Targum  of  Jonathan)  with  the  later  Almon, 
or    Alemeth,    lying  beside   the  ancient   road  which  leads 
across    the  saddle  north  of  the    principal  summit   of  the 
Mount   of  Olives.      Captain    Conder   proposes   to   accept 
this  explaration,  for  the  site  of   Almon  {'Altnlt)  is  suffi- 
ciently near  to  the  "top  of  the  hill"  to  render  its  identity 
with    Bahurim   possible,    while    the  existence  of  numerous 
rock-cut  cisterns  with  narrow  mouths  illustrates  the  incident 
of  the  concealment  of  Jonathan  and  Ahimaaz,  who  "  came 
to  a  man's  house  in  Bahurim  which  had  a  well  in  his  court, 
whither  they  went   down,  and  a  woman  took  and  spread  a 
covering  over  the  well's  mouth  and    spread  ground  corn 
thereon,  and  the  thing  was  not  known."     (Sheet  XVII.) 

Among  the  illustrations  of  later  Jewish  history  springing 
from  the  survey,  we  may  notice  the  discovery  of  wine  presses 
at  Jczrcel,  where  no  vines  at  present  exist;  the  probable 
identification    of   Teiasir,   where  the   KinL;s  of  Israel  were 


THE  SURVEY  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE.  119 

buried,  and  the  indication  of  a  possible  site  for  Megiddo  at 
the  important  ruin  Mujedd'a.  The  topography  of  the 
apochryphal  Book  of  Judith  is  now  shown  to  be  quite  pos- 
sible, and  the  famous  city  Bethulia  has  been  located  in  a 
position  answering  every  known  requisite  at  the  modern 
village  of  MWiilia.  A  curious  but  important  distinction 
may  now  be  made  between  Tipsah  or  Thapsacus,  on 
Euphrates,  and  the  Tiphsah  where  Menahem  so  cruelly 
avenged  himself  on  rebellious  subjects  (2  Kings  xv.  i6j. 
At  a  time  when  the  King  of  Israel  was  a  tributary  of  the 
Assyrian  monarch  it  seemed  highly  improbable  that  Hebrew- 
conquests  should  have  extended  to  Euphrates,  and  an 
ancient  ruin  called  Tafsah  still  existing  south  of  Shechem 
seems  more  probably  the  site  of  the  rebellious  city,  which 
refused  to  submit  to  the  usurper  Menahem  after  his  conquest 
of  Samaria  and  Tirzah.     (Sheet  XIV.) 

The  victories  and  defeats  of  Judas  Maccabseus  are  in  like 
manner  illustrated  by  recent  discovery.  The  site  of  the 
great  battle  in  which  he  lost  his  life  has  been  variously 
placed  near  Ashdod,  and  north  of  Jerusalem.  The  identiti- 
cation  of  Eleasa  (Ilasa),  Berea  (Bireh),  Berzetho  (Bir  ez 
Zeit),  and  Mount  Azotus  near  the  last,  now  show  that  the 
])osition  which  he  occupied  was  originally  intended  to  inter- 
cept the  retreat  of  Bacchides  by  an  advance  from  Modin — 
the  native  town  of  the  Hasmoneans — on  the  narrow  pass 
through  which  the  road  from  Samaria  to  Jerusalem  leads  in 
the  vicinity  of 'Ain  el  Haramiyeh.     (Sheet  XVII.) 

The  site  of  the  famous  battle  of  Adasa  in  like  manner  is 
found  at  a  spot  where  the  two  main  lines  of  advance  on 
Jerusalem  from  the  north  join  one  another;  and  the  first 
campaign  of  Judas,  as  is  now  clearly  evident,  consisted  in  the 
defence  of  the  three  main  passes  leading  from  the  north-west, 
the  west,  and  south-west  to  the  Holy  City. 

Turning  from  the  Old  Testament  history  to  the  study  of 


I20  TWENTV-ONE   YEARS'    WOKE. 

the  topography  of  the  Gospels,  it  will  he  found  that  the 
survey  of  Palestine  has  not  been  without  imi)ortant  results 
in  illustration  of  the  life  of  Christ.  New  information  has 
been  collected  as  to  Bethabara,  Emmaus,  /Knon,  Sychar, 
Antijjatris,  Capernaum,  Cana,  and  Calvary. 

The  identification  of  iMnniaus  is  another  instance  of  the 
importance  of  minute  examination  of  the  ground.  'J"he 
district  where  the  sui)posed  site  is  found  was  fairly  well 
known,  hut  the  ruin  hidden  in  a  well-watered  valley 
among  gardens  of  lemon  and  orange  had  not  previously 
been  explored.  It  was  generally  recognised  by  scholars 
that  the  Emmaus,  where  Christ  supped  with  two  dis- 
ciples, could  not  be  the  same  as  the  famous  Emmaus 
Nicopolis  where  Judas  conquered  the  Greeks. 

The  latter  city  was  i6o  stadia  from  Jerusalem,  but  the 
village  Emmaus,  where  Herod's  soldiers  were  settled,  was 
both  according  to  St.  Luke,  and  according  to  Josephus, 
only  60  stadia  distant  from  the  capital.  The  name  Emmaus 
is  a  corruption  of  the  Hebrew  KJuDninath,  a  "  hot  spring," 
applied  to  medicinal  springs,  even  when  not  ot  very  high 
temperature,  as  at  Emmaus  Nicopolis.  The  ruin  which 
has  now  been  found  at  nearly  the  exact  distance  (60  stadia) 
from  Jerusalem  is  called  Khaiuasa,  thus  representing  the 
vulgar  pronunciation  of  the  Hebrew  original.  Ancient  rock- 
cut  sepulchres  and  a  causeway  mark  the  site  as  being  of 
considerable  anti([uity,  and  the  vicinity  is  still  remarkable 
for  its  fine  supply  of  spring  water.  Among  the  numerous 
sites  proposed  for  Emmaus  there  is  none  which  has  so 
many  argvm'.ents  ui  its  favour  as  has  the  new  discovery  of 
the  survey  party.      (.Sheet  XVU.) 

With  respect  to  A\w()W  and  Sychar,  the  surveyors  have 
only  confirmed  the  views  advocated  by  Dr.  Robinson  and 
Canon  Williams.  The  existence  of  "  much  water  "  and  of 
open  ground  suitable  for  the  assembly  of  a  crowd  has  now 


rilE  SURVEY  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE.  121 

been  pointed  out  in  the  vicinity  of  the  village  SAlim  or 
Salem,  and  of  the  ruin  'Ainun  or  ^non. 

Of  the  numerous  sites  previously  proposed  there  is  no 
other  which  unites  every  requisite  of  name  and  water  su]>i)ly. 
Other  ^■Enons  exist  far  from  any  Salem,  and  other  Salems  in 
water  districts  where  no  name  ^non  is  found;  but  in  the 
Great  Wady  Far'ah,  which,  starting  at  Shechem,  formed  the 
north  boundary  of  Judea,  in  the  Jordan  valle}',  we  find  a 
site  which  appears  to  satisfy  every  requirement  and  to  agree 
well  with  the  new  identification  of  Bethabara.      (Sheet  XII.) 

As  regards  Sychar,  Canon  Williams  has  argued  in  favour 
of  the  village  'Askar,  close  to  Jacob's  well — a  hamlet 
apparently  overlooked  by  Robinson.  The  survey  investi- 
gations have  shown  that  the  ancient  Samaritan  name  of  thi.i 
village  closely  approached  to  the  Hebrew  Sychar.  and  the 
error  first  made  by  the  Crusaders,  who  confounded  Sychar 
with  Shechem,  and  which  has  subsequently  been  adopted 
by  Dr.  Robinson,  in  spite  of  the  evidence  of  the  early 
travellers  of  the  fourth  to  the  seventh  centuries,  and  which 
has  found  its  way  into  the  pages  of  Canon  Farrar's  "  Life  of 
Christ,"  may  now  be  corrected  through  the  explorations 
which  prove  the  antiquity  and  ancient  name  of  the  village 
'Askar  near  Jacob's  well.     (Sheet  XI.) 

As  regards  Bethsaida  the  evidence  is  purely  negative,  no 
trace  of  the  name  of  the  supposed  Gahlean  Bethsaida 
having  been  found.  The  theory  that  two  Bethsaidas 
existed  on  the  shores  of  the  Sea  of  G.ililee  was  originated 
by  the  learned  Reland,  and  has  been  adopted  by  many 
authorities.  Captain  Conder,  however,  agrees  with  Renan 
and  Robinson  in  supposing  that  only  one  site  of  that  name 
existed,  namely,  the  village  afterwards  named  Julias,  east 
of  the  Jordan  and  not  far  from  its  mouth. 

As  regards  Crq)ernaum,  the  authorities  are  still  divided  into 
two  parties.       Captain  Conder  nnd    Lieutenant    Kitchener 


122 


TWENTY-ONE    YEARS'   WORK. 


agree  with  Robinson,  Renan,  and  many  others  in  jilacing 
this  city  at  the  ruin  Minyeh  (the  "town  of  the  Minim"  or 
Christian  heretics  who  are  called  in  the  Talmud  "  Sons  of 
Capernaum  ").  Colonel  Wilson,  R.E.,  has,  however,  clearly 
shown  that  from  the  fourth  century  down.  Tell  Hum  has 
been  the  traditional  site  of  this  town,  and  assumes  that  the 
Christian  tradition  is  correct.  Much  still  remains  to  be 
done  to  elucidate  this  subject ;  careful  levels  along  a  line  of 
aqueducts  are  required,  and  excavations  at  Minyeh  are  very 
desirable. 


.>    - 


"1  V  >         •■/- 


Colonnade  at  Samaria. 


A  site  which,  though  not  scriptural,  was  of  much  import- 
ance for  the  understanding  of  the  topography  of  the  Sea  of 
Galilee,  was  recovered  by  Lieutenant  Kitchener  in  the 
modern  Sinn-en-Nabra,  the  ancient  Sinnabris.  This  dis- 
covery supports  the  generally  received  identification  of  the 
important  town  of  Tarichea  (Kerak),  which  owing  to  a  mis- 


THE  SURVEY  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE.  123 

conception  has  been  placed  on  recent  maps  north  instead 
of  south  of  Tiberias. 

The  question  of  the  boundaries  of  Samaria  in  the  time  ot 
Christ  is  one  not  a  Httle  important  to  the  understanding  of 
His  journeys  through  Pertea.  By  the  recovery  of  Anuath 
{'Aina),  Borceos  (Berkit),  Antipatris,  Beth-Rima,  and  other 
places,  we  have  been  able  for  the  first  time  to  lay  down  the 
line  of  the  border  between  Judaea  and  Samaria  with  con- 
siderable accuracy  of  detail,  and  to  show  the  necessity  of 
the  journey  across  Jordan  in  passing  from  Galilee  to 
Jerusalem  (Mark  x.  i ). 

Without  entering  into  the  famous  controversy  as  to  the 
site  of  Calvary,  it  should  be  noticed  that  an  important  piece 
of  novel  information  bearing  on  the  question  has  been 
collected  during  the  course  of  the  survey.  The  place  of 
execution  used  by  the  Jews  before  the  destruction  of 
Jerusalem,  and  called  in  the  Talmud  Beth-has-Sekilah,  or 
the  "  house  of  stoning,"  is  still  shown  by  their  modern 
descendants  outside  the  Damascus  gate  north  of  the  city. 
To  Christians  it  is  known  as  the  cliff  of  Jeremiah's  grotto, 
in  consequence  of  a  tradition  which  is  only  traceable  as 
far  back  as  the  fifteenth  century.  The  fact  that  a  precipice 
is  mentioned  (in  the  Talmudic  account  of  the  punishment 
of  stoning)  as  existing  at  the  place  of  execution  appears 
to  confirm  the  tradidon.  Ihis  spot  has  according  to 
modern  authorities  always  been  outside  Jerusalem,  and  some 
travellers  think  they  have  observed  a  skull-like  formation 
in  the  hill-top  above  the  cave  such  as  the  early  fathers 
often  attribute  to  Golgotha.  That  Christ  was  executed 
according  to  Roman  custom  rather  than  the  Jewish  is 
certain  ;  but  there  is  no  reason  to  suppose  that  Jerusalem 
possessed  two  places  of  execution  at  the  time— the  con- 
servatism of  the  east  would  indeed  point  to  an  opposite 
conclusion.      If  the  Jewish  tradition  be   trustworthy  we  see 


124  riVENTY-ONK    YEARS'   WORK. 

ill  tlic  site  llnis  recovered  an  identification  which  possesses 
ill  a  high  degree  a  claim  on  our  attention,  as  one  of  the 
most  important  that  can  be  expected  in  Palestine. 

'J'he  discoveries  thus  far  described  have  been  mainly 
topographical,  as  must  be  naturally  expected  from  the 
character  of  the  work  undertaken.  The  survey  party, 
however,  enjoyed  unusual  opportunities  for  the  study  of 
the  manners  and  customs  of  the  native  peasantry  and  of 
the  Bedawin,  in  districts  where  a  Frank  had  sometimes 
never  been  seen  before ;  and  from  this  intimate  inter- 
course many  interesting  results  were  obtained  in  illus- 
tration of  the  manners  and  customs  of  the  lower  classes 
as  described  in  the  Bible.  A  detailed  account  of  many 
of  these  discoveries  will  be  found  in  the  last  chapters  of 
"Tent  Work  in  Palestine,"  published  by  the  Committee, 
which  are  devoted  to  the  description  of  various  nation- 
alities to  be  found  in  Syria. 

The  anticjuity  of  the  native  peasant  stock  is  evidenced 
both  by  their  language  and  by  the  peculiarities  of  their 
religion.  Their  pronunciation  of  many  letters  is  archaic, 
and  approaches  much  closer  to  the  Aramaic  or  to  the 
Hebrew  than  to  modern  Arabic.  There  are  also  many  pure 
Hebrew- words  in  use  among  the  Fellahin  which  are  uiiiiitL-l- 
ligible  to  the  inhabitants  of  towns  who  use  the  modern 
Arabic  words  instead.  The  worship  of  Mukams  or 
"  Shrines  "  among  the  peasantry  is  also  intimately  connected 
with  the  old  worshi[)  of  trees  and  high  j)laces  by  the 
Canaanites,  although  the  traditions  attaching  to  these  sacred 
places  are  traceable  to  Crusading,  Byzantine,  or  Moslem 
origin,  as  well  as  in  other  cases  to  an  older  indigenous  source. 

In  manners,  customs,  and  dress,  the  peasantry  recall  the 
incidental  notices  of  the  same  population  in  i)re-Christian 
times.  The  "  round  tires  like  the  moon,"  against  which 
Isaiah  declaimed,  are  still  worn   by  the  women  of  Samaria. 


THE  SURVEY  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE. 


125 


Like  Jezebel,  they  still  paint  their  faces  ;  like  Elijah,  the 
men  still  gird  up  their  loins.  The  "  corner  of  the  field  "  is 
still  left  for  the  poor,  and  a  tithe  of  corn  for  the  Levite  (or 
Derwish).  The  harvest  customs  and  methods  of  tillage  are 
unchanged  ;  the  olives  are  still  beaten  down  with  a  rod. 
These  are  but  single  instances  of  the  numerous  scriptural 
expressions  which  are  now  illustrated  by  the  customs  of  the 
Syrian  peasantry.  The  nomadic  life  of  the  early  patriarchs 
is  in  the  same  way  illustrated  by  the  manners  of  the  Bedawin 
of  the  deserts,  and,  as  above  stated,  the  settled  and  pastoral 
districts  retain  the  same  relative  position  as  in  earlier  times. 


Tell  es  Safl  (Cath  ?). 


To  sum  up,  therefore,  as  to  the  value  of  this  Survey 
to  the  world  at  large.  Not  onXy  has  there  been  a  very- 
great  extension  of  the  known  sites,  but,  for  the  fust 


126  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'   IVOR  A'. 

time,  the  natural  features  of  the  countn'liavc  been  laid 
down  in  exact  detail,  so  that  the  reader  of  the  Bible 
may  now  follow  step  by  step  the  events  of  which  he 
reads.  It  is  no  longer  with  him  a  cjuestion  as  to  which 
route  might  have  been  followed  ;  he  sees  which  route 
must  have  been  followed,  he  need  no  longer,  to 
arrive  at  the  true  distances  from  place  to  place,  follow 
Robinson,  Guerin,  and  the  rest,  in  their  tedious  "  two 
hours  to  the  east,  then  an  hour  and  a  quarter  to  the 
north-east,"  and  so  forth  ;  he  can  simpl\-  take  a  com- 
pass and  measure  the  exact  distance.  ]\Iore  than 
this,  he  can  follow  on  the  map  the  route  which  must 
have  been  taken  in  any  expedition.  If  again  he 
will  turn  from  the  map  to  the  memoirs  he  will  learn 
the  character  of  the  countr}-  and  its  fertility,  its 
ancient  vineyards,  terraced  hills,  and  olive  presses,  its 
modern  forests,  its  fountains — in  one  sheet  alone  of 
the  map  there  are  200  fountains, — and  its  flora. 
Again,  if  he  wishes  to  study  the  history  of  the  country- 
subsequent  to  that  of  the  Bible,  he  will  find  how  one 
ruin  stands  upon  another,  and  that  upon  an  older  ruin 
still  ;  so  that  even  in  Joshua's  time  tlicre  were  alread}- 
ruins  in  the  land  ;  how  you  ma}-  find  the  mosque  built 
from  the  materials  of  the  church,  the  church  from 
those  of  the  synagogue,  or  the  Turkish  fort  from  the 
Crusading  castle,  the  castle  from  the  monastery,  the 
monastery  from  the  Roman  walls. 

It  ma}-  in  short,  be  fairl}-  claimed  for  the  Surve}-  of 


THE  SURVEY  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE.         127 

Western  Palestine  that  nothing  has  ever  been  done  fo7- 
the  illustration  and  right  nndersta7iding  of  tJie  historical 
portions  of  the  Old  and  Nezv  Testament,  since  the 
translation  into  the  vulgar  tongue,  zvhich  may  be  com- 
pared with  this  great  ivork.  The  officer  whose  name 
is  especially  associated  with  these  maps  and  memoirs 
has  made  himself  a  name  which  will  last  as  long  as 
there  are  found  men  and  women  to  read  and  study 
the  Sacred  Books. 


128 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THK   ARCH.'EOLOGICAL    EXPEDITION. 

In  the  autumn  of  the  year  1873  the  Committee  found 
themselves  able  to  secure  the  services  of  M.  Cler- 
mont Cianncau  for  an  archaeological  expedition. 
He  received  general  instructions  to  look  about  him 
and  observe  and  report  upon  whatever  he  saw.  He 
undertook  to  work  for  the  Socict)-  for  one  )'car.  He 
was  accompanied  b}'  M.  Lecomte  for  the  purpose  of 
executing  architectural  drawings. 

The  following  are  the  principal  discoveries  which 
rewarded  his  labours  : — 

1.  The  ancient  Jewish  cemetery  of  Jaffa.     One  of 

the  epitai)hs  in  marble  is  now  in  the  Socict}''s 
collection. 

2.  The  identification  of  a  head  in  marble  found  in 

Jerusalem  with  the  head  of  Hadrian's  statue 
set  up  on  the  site  of  the  Holy  of  Holies.  A 
cast  of  the  head  is  in  our  possession.  It  has 
been  figured  in  the  (2iiartcrly  Stattinciit,  and 
in  the  Memoirs,  p.  207,   1874. 


THE  ARCH^OLOGICAL  EXPEDITION.  129 

3.  The  finding  and  deciphering  of  inscriptions  on 

certain  Juda;o  Christian  sarcophagi  on  the 
Mount  of  Offence.  It  is  remarkable  that 
these  inscriptions,  which  were  discovered 
close  to  the  Bethany  road,  contain  the  name 
of  Lazarus,  Martha,  and  Simon.  They  in- 
clude:  Judah  Salome,  wife  of  Judah ;  Judah, 
the  scribe ;  Simeon  the  son  of  Jesus 
(Bar-Jeshuo) ;  Martha,  daughter  of  Pasach  ; 
Eleazer  (of  which  Lazarus  is  the  Greek  form), 
son  of  Nathan  ;  Judah,  son  of  Hananiah ; 
Salam  Isim,  daughter  of  Simon  the  Priest ; 
Salampsion. 

4.  Proposed  identification  of  the  Stone  of  Bohan 

with  the  Hajar  el  Asbah.  (Memoirs,  Western 
Survey,  Vol.  IIL,  p.  199.) 

5.  The  discovery  (simultaneously  with  Mr.  C.  F. 

Tyrwhitt  Drake)  of  the  great  forgery  of  the 
so-called  Moabite  inscriptions.  {Qiiartcr/y 
Statement,  1869,  1874,  and  1878.) 

6.  The  indication  of  the   "  taille   mediaevale,"  or 

mediaeval    method    of   dressing    stones    for 

building. 
This    discovery    is    especially   useful    in  a  country 
where    there    are    ruins    of  every   age,    and    where  a 
question  of  identification  may  turn  upon  the  date  of  a 
building. 

7.  Finding  of  an  ancient  cemetery  north  of  the  city. 

1 


I30 


TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'   WORK. 


Section,   cm  A£.C. 


State 


feet    10         £■         0 

1  I  I  1 I 


K 

i  -  -■ 


W 


SO 


It) 


Tomb  of  Simon  the  Just. 

8.  Examination  of  many  sepulchral  chambers. 
g.  Examination    of   a   great   series   of  rock-cut 

chambers  west  of  the  Ecce  Homo  Church. 
lO.  Recovery  of  Adullam. 
The  site  of  Adullam  and  its  caves,  one  of  the  most 


THE  ARCH^OLOGICAL  EXPEDITION. 


131 


interesting  sites  of  the  Holy  Land,  had  been  variously 
placed.  M.  Ganneau  has  found  the  very  name  in  a 
somewhat  altered  form,  Aid-el-ma,  attached  to  a 
site  which  singularly  corresponds  with  the  necessities 
of  the  narrative,  and  seems  to  make  David's  history 
at  the  period  connected  with  Adullam  clear  and 
intelligible.  (Memoirs,  Western  Survey,  Vol.  III. 
p.  361.) 


El  Medyeh. 

II.  Drawings  by  M.  Lecomte  (over  a  thousand 

in  number)  of  monuments  and  places  visited 

by   M.    Ganneau.     These   represent   among 

other  things,  architectural  work  in  the  Dome 

of  the  Rock  and  in  the  Haram  Area. 

I  2 


132  TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'   IVOR  A'. 

12.  Greek,  Hebrew  and  Phoenician  inscriptions. 

13.  The    stone    of   Bcthphage.     Figured    in    the 

Quarterly  Statement,  p.  51,  1878. 

14.  The  vase  of  Bezetha. 

This  beautiful  and  unique  vase  found  by  M.  Ganneau 
lying  shattered  on  the  rock  was  completely  put 
together,  and  is  now  in  the  Society's  office  at  i,  Adam 
Street.  Its  date  is  said  to  be  about  that  of  Herod. 
The  ornamentation  is  pagan. 

15.  Examination    of  the   ruins   of   Medyeh,  the 

Maccabaean     Modin.       (Memoirs,    Western 

Survey,  Vol.  H.,  p.  341.) 
M.  Ganneau's  letters  appeared  in  the  Quarterly 
Statement  of  1874.  His  collections  are  all  in  the 
Society's  exhibition  now  at  South  Kensington.  Among 
previous  discoveries  made  by  this  explorer  when  not 
connected  with  the  Society  may  be  mentioned, — 

1.  His  discovery  of  the  stone  of  Herod's  Temple 

with  the  Greek  inscription,  word  for  word  as 
given  by  Josephus. 

2.  His   .securing  of  the  large    fragments    of  the 

Moabite  stone. 

3.  His  theory  of  what  was  done  with  the  veil  of 

the  Temple. 

4.  Examination  of  the    ancient    tombs    existing 

under  the  Church  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre. 
These  have  also  been  planned  by  Sir 
Charles  Wilson. 


1^3 


CHAPTER  VIIL 

THE   SURVEY   OF   EASTERN   PALESTINE. 

The  present  condition  of  our  knowledge  as  regards 
Eastern  Palestine  was  described  in  the  year  1880  [see 
Quarterly  Statement,  Januar}-,  1881),  before  the 
survey  was  commenced. 

It  resembles  very  much  that  of  Western  Palestine  when  the 
survey  was  first  commenced.  The  country  has  been  visited 
by  many  travellers  who  have  described  its  general  features 
and  many  of  its  ruined  cities.  Among  these  travellers  may 
be  mentioned  Burckhardt,  Seetzen,  Wetzstein,  Irby  and 
Mangles,  Lord  Lindsay,  De  Vogiie,  Waddington,  De 
Luynes,  Porter,  Costigan,  Lynch,  Molyneux,  Robinson, 
Cyril  Czraham,  Thomson,  Tipping,  Tristram,  MacGregor, 
Eaton,  Zeller,  Wilson  and  Anderson,  Warren,  Burton, 
Drake,  Palmer,  Socin,  Steever,  Merrill,  Klein,  Freshfield 
and  Oliphant. 

Our  own  expeditions  under  Lieutenant  Warren  and  those 
of  the  American  Exploration  Society  east  of  Jordan  have 
made  reconnaissances  which  will  facilitate  the  work  now 
i:)roposed. 

The  country  to  be  surveyed  comprises  the  following  dis- 
tricts or  provinces : — 

I.  Bashan,  the  "level"  land,  which  extends  from  tlie 
southern  slopes  of  Mount  Hermon  to  Gilead  on  the  south, 
the  southern  frontier  being  the  River  Hieromax,  now  called 


134  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'  WORK. 

the  Nahr  Yarmuk  or  the  Sheriat  el  Mandhur.     Bashan  is 
subdivided  into  : — 

a.  Jetur  (Itursea),  now  called  Jedur,  of  which  Philip 
was  tetrarch  (Luke  iii.  i),  named  after  Jetur,  the 
son  of  Ishmael  (Genesis  xxv.  15,  16).  It  was 
conquered  by  the  Manassites  (i  Chronicles  v. 
18-23),  who  lived  there  until  the  Captivity.  This 
country  contains  the  southern  and  eastern  slopes 
of  Hermon  and  the  table-land  eastward. 

h.  The  district  named  after  the  city  of  Golan  (Gaula- 
nitis)  now  called  Jaulan.  This  is  a  table-land 
rising  by  terraces  from  the  Jordan  Valley.  The 
city  (Joshua  xx,  8),  which  gave  a  name  to  the  dis- 
trict, has  yet  to  be  identified.  Dr.  Porter  says 
that  there  are  a  hundred  and  twenty-seven  ruined 
towns  in  it,  among  them  the  ancient  towns  of 
Aphek,  Gergesa,  Bethsaida,  Hippos,  Gamala  and 
Ashtaroth. 

c.  The  Hauran  (Auranitis),  a  level  land,  with  the  ruins 
of  150  towns,  the  buildings  of  which  are  still  re- 
maining in  good  preservation,  many  of  them  with 
roofs,  doors,  and  window  shutters,  all  of  stone  and 
still  in  their  places.  A  vast  number  of  Greek  and 
Roman  inscriptions  have  been  collected  in  this 
district.  Those  found  by  MM.  de  Vogiie  and 
Waddington  have  been  published  in  de  Vogue''s 
magnificent  work  on  the  architecture  and  archae- 
ology of  Central  Syria. 

d.  The  Argob  or  Trachonitis,  now  called  el  Lejah, 
which  is,  correctly,  a  part  of  the  Hauran.  This 
formed  part  of  the  kingdom  of  Og  (Deuteronomy 
iii.  4,  5),  when  it  held  threescore  cities  "fenced 
with  high  walls."  Remains  of  more  than  sixty 
cities   have   been   found   here,   but   it   has   been 


THE  SURVEY  OF  EASTERN  PALESTINE.  135 

but  little  visited  of  late,  and  never  completely 
explored. 
e.  East  of  the  Hauran  is  the  district  of  Batansa  con- 
taining the  Hill  of  Bashan.  This  country  is  that 
of  the  Maachathites  (Deuteronomy  iii.  14;  Joshua 
xii.  5  ;  2  Samuel  x.  6  ;   i  Chronicles  xix.  7). 

II.  The  land  of  Gilead,  including  territory  allotted  to 
the  tribes  of  Reuben,  Gad,  and  part  of  Manasseh,  extend- 
ing southwards  as  far  as  the  river  Arnon. 

III.  Moab,  whose  principal  cities  are  Dibon  (where  the 
Moabite stone  was  found),  Rabbath  Moab,  and  Kir  Haraseth. 

The  following  are  some  of  the  Biblical  events  connected 
with  this  part  of  the  country : — 

The  battles  of  the  "four  kings  against  five"  (Genesis  xiv. 
1-12);  the  destruction  of  the  Cities  of  the  Plain;  the 
meeting  of  Jacob  and  Laban  ;  that  of  Jacob  and  Esau  ; 
Jacob's  vision  at  Mahanaim  ;  the  wrestling  at  Penuel ;  the 
conquest  of  Sihon  by  Moses  ;  the  battle  of  Edrei ;  the 
"  Pisgah  View  ;  "  the  death  and  burial  of  Moses  ;  the  story 
of  Balak  and  Baalam  ;  the  division  of  the  land  among  the 
two  and  a-half  tribes  ;  the  establishment  of  the  three  Leviti- 
cal  cities  ;  the  wars  of  the  Manassites  and  Gadites  with  the 
Hagarites ;  the  pursuit  of  Gideon  ;  the  revolt  and  victories 
of  Jephthah ;  the  wars  of  David  against  Ammon ;  the 
flight  of  SauFs  sons,  and  that  of  David  ;  the  campaigns  of 
Ahab  and  his  son  Joram  with  their  allies,  Jehoshaphat  and 
Ahaziah  ;  the  wars  with  Moab  ;  the  birth  of  Elijah ;  the  in- 
vasion of  Tiglath  Pilezer  and  of  Hazael,  and  the  captivity 
of  the  tribes. 

Here  is  the  River  Arnon,  the  boundary  between  Moab 
and  the  Amorites,  on  whose  banks  stood  Aroer,  and  the 
mysterious  city  "  in  the  midst  of  the  river."  Here  are 
Heshbon,  the  capital  of  Sihon,  not  far  from  Jahaz,  where 


136  TWENTY-ONE  YEAR  ST   WORK. 

that  king  met  with  his  overthrow ;  Rabbath  Ammon,  the 
one  city  belonging  to  the  Ammonites,  besieged  by  Joab,  and 
taken  by  David ;  Ramoth  Gilead,  which  played  so  great  a 
part  in  the  wars  between  the  SjTians  and  the  kingdom  of 
Judah ;  Gadara,  whose  modern  inhabitants,  like  the  de- 
moniacs of  the  miracle  which  associates  the  city  with  the 
New  Testament,  dwell  in  the  ancient  tombs ;  Bcthsaida 
Julias,  the  scene  of  the  miracle  of  Mark  vi.  31-53; 
Coesarea  Philippi,  the  northernmost  point  of  Our  Lord's 
wanderings,  where  Herod  built  his  temple  of  white  marble  j 
Damascus,  with  the  rivers  Pharphar  and  Abana  ;  the  Bozrah 
of  Jeremiah  xlviii.  24  ;  the  river  Jabbok,  where  Esau  and 
Jacob  met,  the  boundary  of  the  Ammonites ;  Machserus, 
where  John  the  Baptist  was  beheaded ;  Callirrhoe,  whither 
Herod  the  Great  repaired  in  hopes  of  recovery  from  his 
disease.  On  this  side  are  also  the  great  palace  of  Hyrcanus 
(Arak  el  Emir)  ;  the  unfinished  palace  of  Chosroes  the 
Second  (Mashita) ;  the  fortress  of  Kerak,  where  Mesha 
sacrificed  his  son  ;  and  Dibon.  We  must  not  forget,  also, 
that  it  was  on  this  side  that  the  Christian  Church  found 
a  refuge  during  the  troubled  times  of  the  siege  by  Titus, 

The  expedition  for  the  survey  of  Eastern  Palestine 
reached  Beyrout  on  the  29th  March,  1881,  and  having 
to  wait  for  instruments.  Captain  Conder,  with  whom 
was  Lieutenant  Mantell,  R.E.,  made  a  survey  north 
and  discovered  (see  p.  i  ^^'j)  the  long  lost  Kadesh  of 
the  Hittites.  After  visiting  Baalbek,  Homs  and  other 
places,  the  party  moved  southward  with  the  intention 
of  continuing  the  survey  in  the  south.  T)rc  was 
examined,  and  the  "Egyptian  Harbour"  was  dis- 
covered and  traced.     The  ancient  T)'rian   cemetery 


\7ofacf  p.  137. 


DIAGRAM    OF  TRIANGULATION 

SHEWING  CONNECTION 
WITH 

WESTERN   SURVEY. 


.KURN SARTABEH 


\\ 
\\ 
\\ 

>  \ 
\  \ 


J.OSHA 


.HALElUfEH 


KHULDEH. 


.ELHAUD 


\ 


•iMESHEIKFEH 


T/IIHIH 


"1    "■-      \ 


'kSr  el  rAHUD 


U.EHD  OF  BASE\ 


BirEHf- 


^S.END^Or.  BASE 
'^JELVL 


*TELL    KAIH 


REFERENCE. 
Solid  LiKti    Hen   A A 

Dotted  lines   Old  £r- A 


THE  SURVEY  OF  EASTERN  PALESTINE.  i?7 

was  found,  a  probable  site  was  discovered  for  the 
Temple  of  Melkath,  and  the  mounds  of  Neby  Mashuk 
and  Tell  Habish  were  examined. 

After  some  delays,  caused  by  the  unsettled  state  of 
the  country.  Captain  Conder  was  able  to  cross  the 
Jordan  and  begin  the  survey.  It  was  hoped  that  the 
old  firman,  with  which  the  Society  had  worked  for  so 
long,  would  continue  to  be  respected.  The  hope, 
however,  proved  to  be  ill-founded.  Within  a  month 
after  their  arrival  Captain  Conder  received  a 
peremptory  message  from  the  Governor  of  El  Salt, 
that  the  survey  could  not  be  allowed  to  be  carried  on, 
and  that  he  must  take  his  party  back  again.  By 
interposing  delays.  Captain  Conder  succeeded  in 
getting  ten  weeks'  work  in  the  country,  and  when  he 
was  at  length  obliged  to  return,  it  was  with  laden 
hands,  for  he  had  surveyed  500  square  miles,  and 
brought  back  hundreds  of  drawings,  with  the  materials 
for  a  whole  volume  of  memoirs. 

Among  the  more  important  results  were  : — 

I.   Identifications. 

1.  The  Field  of  Zophim  (Numbers  xxiii.  14.) 

2.  The  Ascent  of  Luhith  (Jeremiah  xlviii.  5). 

3.  Jazer  (Joshua  xiii.  25). 

4.  Sibmah  (Numbers  xxxii.  3,  38). 

5.  Minnith  (Judges  xi.  33). 

6.  Bamoth  Baal. 

7.  Baal  Peor. 


138 


TWENTY-ONE    YEARS'  WORK. 


II.  Ancient  Monuments. 

I.  Cromlechs,  and  other  rude  stone  monuments. 
Of  these  hundreds  were  found  and  sketched. 


Cromlech  near  Hesbon. 

They  occur  for  the  most  part  in  groups,  and  in 
connection  with  some  are  certain  curious  rock- 
cut  chambers. 
2.  Ruins.       The    most    important    are    those    of 
Amman  and  Arak-El-Emir.      At  the  former 


THE  SUR  VE  V  OF  EASTERN  PALESTINE.  1 39 

place  Captain  Conder  sketched  and  planned  a 
remarkable  building,  hitherto  called  Byzantine, 
which  now  turns  out  to  be  Persian.  Two 
hundred  ruins  were  examined. 

3.  Names.     Six  hundred  names  were  collected. 

4.  Examination  of  Sites.  The  principal  sites 
examined  were  those  of  Heshbon  Elealah, 
Medeba,  Baal  Meon,  Nebo,  and  Pisgah. 

Every  attempt  to  obtain  a  firman  has  hitherto 
proved  unavailing,  so  that  the  survey  of  Eastern 
Palestine  would  seem  impossible.  However,  within 
the  last  few  months  we  have  been  able,  through  the 
accident  of  survey  work  being  required  for  other 
purposes,  to  get  a  few  hundred  miles  in  addition, 
which  will  be  added  to  our  map.  And  if,  as  seems 
probable,  we  do  not  get  our  firman  we  shall  lose  no 
opportunity  of  carrying  on  the  survey  by  small  pieces, 
and  as  occasion  offers. 


I40 


CHAPTER    IX. 

THE   GEOLOGICAL   SURVEY. 

The  Geological  Survey  laid  down  in  our  original 
prospectus  has  been  accomplished  by  Prof.  Edward 
Hull,  F.R.S. 


The  expedition  was  undertaken  in  the  winter  of 
1883-4.  The  party  consisted  of  Prof.  Hull,  and 
his  son,  Dr.  Gordon  Hull.      Major  Kitchener  accom- 


THE  GEOLOGICAL  SURVEY.  141 

panied  the  party  in  order  to  make  a  survey  of  the 
Wady  Arabah.  He  was  assisted  by  Mr.  George 
Armstrong.  Mr.  E.  Chichester  Hart,  formerly 
naturahst  to  Sir  George  Nares's  voyage  to  the  Arctic 
regions,  went  with  them  as  naturalist,  but  at  his  own 
expense,  and  Mr.  Reginald  Laurence  also  accompanied 
the  party  at  his  own  charges. 

The    results    of    the    expedition    have    been    thus 
summed  up  by  Prof.  Hull  : — 

1.  A  complete  triangulation  of  the  district  lying  between 
the  mountains  of  Sinai  and  the  Wady  el  Arabah,  together 
with  that  of  the  Wady  el  Arabah  itself,  bounded  on  the 
west  by  the  tableland  of  the  Tih,  and  on  the  east  by  the 
mountains  of  Edom  and  Moab.  This  was  entirely  the  work 
of  Major  Kitchener,  and  his  assistant  Mr.  G.  Armstrong 
(formerly  Sergeant-Major  R.E.).  An  outline  survey  along 
the  line  of  route  was  also  made,  and  has  been  laid  down  in 
MS.  on  a  map  prepared  by  Mr.  Armstrong  on  the  same 
scale  as  the  reduced  Map  of  Palestine,  viz.,  |  inch  to  one 
statute  mile,  or  tgsWo- 

2.  Some  important  rectifications  of  the  borders  of  the 
Salt  Sea,  and  of  the  Gulf  of  Akabah,  were  also  made. 

3.  A  geological  reconnaissance  along  the  line  of  route 
through  the  districts  of  Sinai,  Akabah,  and  the  Wady  el 
Arabah,  including  the  following  particulars  : — 

(rt)  Collections  of  fossils  from  the  Wady  Nasb  lime- 
stone ;  additions  to  those  already  made  by  Mr.  Bauerman 
and  Colonel  Sir  C.  W.  Wilson.  These  fossils  (which  are 
being  examined  by  Prof  Sollas)  go  to  show  that  this 
limestone  is  of  Carboniferous  age.  The  Wady  Nasb  lime- 
stone was  found  to  continue  over  a  considerable  region 
north  of  Mount  Sinai,  and  was  again  recognised  amongst 


142  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'  WORK. 

the  mountains  of  Moab  on  the  east  side  of  the  Salt  Sea  in 
the  Wady  el  Hessi.  As  this  limestone  rests  upon  a  red 
sandstone  foundation,  this  latter  may  also  be  assumed  to  be 
of  the  same  geological  age,  and  therefore  cannot  be  the 
representative  of  the  "  Nubian  Sandstone "  of  Rosiere, 
which  (as  Prof  Zittel  has  shown)  is  of  Cretaceous  age. 
I  propose  to  call  this  formation,  therefore,  "  the  Desert 
Sandstone."  It  forms,  with  the  limestone,  a  strip  along  the 
borders  of  the  ancient  rocks  of  Paleozoic,  or  Archaean,  age, 
and  is  about  400  feet  in  average  thickness  ;  the  base  is 
generally  a  conglomerate. 

ip)  Above  the  Wady  Nasb  limestone  is  another  sand- 
stone formation,  of  which  a  large  portion  of  the  Debbet  er 
Ramleh  is  formed.  It  is  laid  open  in  the  Wadies  Zelegah, 
Biyar,  &c.,  and  along  the  mountains  of  Edom  and  Moab. 
Out  of  this  rock  have  been  hewn  the  ancient  temples, 
tombs,  and  dwellings  of  Petra  and  the  Wady  Musa.  It 
stretches  along  the  southern  escarpment  of  the  Tib  plateau, 
and  forms  the  base  of  the  limestone  cliffs  along  the  margin 
of  the  Wady  el  Arabah  as  far  north  as  Nagb  es  Salni.  This 
sandstone  formation  is  soft,  red,  or  beautifully  variegated. 
It  is  (in  all  probability)  of  Cretaceous  age,  and,  if  so,  the 
true  representative  of  the  "  Nubian  Sandstone  "  of  Russeger. 
It  will  thus  be  seen  that  there  are  two  red  sandstone 
formations,  one  below,  the  other  above  the  Carboniferous 
limestone  of  the  Wady  Nasb. 

{c)  The  geological  structure  of  the  Wady  el  Arabah  was 
examined  throughout  a  distance  of  120  miles  from  south  to 
north.  That  it  has  been  hollowed  out  along  the  line  of  a 
main  fault  (or  line  of  fracture  and  displacement)  ranging 
from  the  eastern  shore  of  the  Salt  Sea  to  that  of  the  Gulf  of 
Akabah,  was  clearly  determined.  The  position  of  the  fault 
itself  was  made  out  and  laid  down  on  the  map*  in  six  or 

*  The  map  used  was  an  enlarged  plan  from  Smith  and  Groves' 
Ancient  Atlas  (J.  Murray). 


THE  GEOLOGICAL  SURVEY.  143 

seven  places ;  one  being  about  ten  miles  north  of  Akabah, 
another  near  the  watershed,  in  which  places  the  limestone 
of  the  Tih  (Cretaceo-nummulitic)  is  faulted  against  the  old 
porphyritic  and  metamorphic  rocks,  as  illustrated  by  the 
section  across  the  Arabah  Valley,  given  in  a  previous 
page  (p.  77). 

There  are  numerous  parallel  and  branching  faults  along 
the  Arabah  Valley,  but  there  is  one  leading  fracture  running 
along  the  base  of  the  Edomite  Mountains,  to  which  the 
others  are  of  secondary  importance:  this  may  be  called 
"  the  Great  Jordan  Valley  fault."  The  relations  of  the 
rocks  in  The  Ghor  and  Jordan  Valley  have  already  been 
shown  by  Lartet,  Tristram,  Wilson,  and  others,  to  indicate 
the  presence  of  a  large  fault  corresponding  with  the  line  of 
this  remarkable  depression,  and  the  author  considers  the 
fracture  he  has  observed  in  the  Arabah  Valley  to  be  con- 
tinuous with  that  of  the  Jordan. 

{d)  The  ancient  rocks  which  form  the  floor  either  of  the 
Desert,  or  Nubian,  Sandstone  formations,  consist  of  granite, 
gneiss,  porphyries,  and  more  rarely  of  metamorphic  schists 
— together  with  volcanic  rocks,  consisting  of  agglomerates, 
tuffs,  and  beds  of  felspathic  trap.  The  author  is  disposed 
to  concur  with  Dr.  Lartet  in  considering  the  gneissose  and 
granitoid  rocks  to  be  of  Archaean  (or  Laurentian)  age,  as 
they  are  probably  representative  of  those  of  Assouan  in 
Upper  Egypt,  which  Prof.  Sir  J.  W.  Dawson  has  recently 
identified  with  those  of  this  age.*  The  granites  and 
porphyries  are  traversed  by  innumerable  dykes  of  porphyry 
and  diorite  both  throughout  the  Sinaitic  mountains  and 
those  of  Edom  and  Moab  ;  and  the  author  considers  it 
probable  that  the  volcanic  rocks  which  are  largely  repre- 
sented along  the  bases  of  Mount  Hor,  and  of  Jebel  es 

*  Dawson  has  shown,  however,  that  there  are  two  metamorphic 
series  in  Upper  Egypt.     Geol.  Magazine^  October,  1884. 


144  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'   WORK. 

Somrah  near  Es  Safieh,  are  contemporaneous  with  these 
dykes.  As  far  as  the  author  was  able  to  observe,  none  of 
these  dykes  i)enetrate  the  Desert  or  Nubian  Sandstones, 
and,  if  so,  tliey  may  be  considered  of  pre-Carboniferous  age. 
The  upper  surface  of  the  ancient  rocks  was  originally 
extremely  uneven,  having  been  worn  and  denuded  into 
ridges  and  hollows,  previous  to  the  deposition  of  the  Desert 
Sandstone  ;  over  this  irregular  floor  the  sandstone  strata 
were  deposited. 

4.  The  occurrence  of  terraces  of  marl,  gravel,  and  silt, 
through  which  the  ravines  of  existing  streams  have  been  cut 
at  an  elevation  (according  to  aneroid  determination)  of 
about  100  feet  above  the  level  of  the  Mediterranean,  was 
taken  to  show  that  the  level  of  the  Salt  Sea  (Bahr  Lut)  at 
one  time  stood. about  1,400  feet  higher  than  at  present- 
These  beds  of  marl  were  first  observed  at  the  camp  at  'Ain 
Abu  Beweireh ;  they  contain  blanched  shells  of  the  genera 
Melanopsis  and  Melanin.  The  beds  of  marl  were  observed 
to  be  enclosed  by  higher  ground  of  more  ancient  strata  in 
every  direction  except  towards  the  north,  where  they  gently 
slope  downwards  towards  the  borders  of  The  Ghor,  and 
become  incorporated  with  strata  of  the  600  feet  terrace. 

5.  The  author  concurs  with  Dr.  Lartet  in  thinking  that 
the  waters  of  the  Jordon  Valley  did  not  flow  down  into  the 
Gulf  of  Akabah  after  the  land  had  emerged  from  the  sea ; 
the  disconnection  of  the  inner  and  outer  waters  was  very 
ancient,  dating  back  to  Miocene  times. 

6.  The  occurrence  of  beds  of  ancient  lakes — consisting 
of  coarse  gravel,  sand,  and  marl — amongst  the  mountains  of 
Sinai,  and  in  the  Wady  el  Arabah,  where  now  only  waterless 
valleys  occur,  taken  in  connection  with  other  phenomena, 
have  impressed  the  author  with  the  conviction  that  the 
former  climatic  conditions  of  Arabia  Petrsa  were  very 
different  from  those  of  the  present  day.     Such  terraces  have 


THE  GEOLOGICAL   SURVEY.  T45 

been  observed  by  Dr.  Post  in  the  Wady  Feiran,  and  Colonel 
Sir  vV.  Wilson  in  the  Wady  Solaf,  and  by  the  author  in  the 
Wadies  Gharandel,  Goweisah,  Hamr,  Solaf  and  Es  Sheikh  or 
Watiyeh.  It  would  appear  that,  at  a  period  coming  down 
probably  to  the  prehistoric,  a  chain  of  lakes  existed  amongst 
the  tortuous  valleys  and  hollows  of  the  Sinaitic  peninsula. 
The  Gypseous  deposits  of  Wady  Amarah  and  'Ain  Hawareh 
are  considered  to  be  old  lake  beds,  and  Mr.  Bauerman  has 
observed  remains  of  fresh-water  shells  {LymtKBa  truncatula) 
and  a  species  of  Pisidium  in  "lake  or  river  alluvium  "  of 
the  Wadies  Feiran  and  Es  Sheikh  {Quart.  Jour.  Geol. 
Soc.,  Vol.  XXV.,  p.  35.) 

7.  The  author  considers  it  probable  that  these  ancient 
Sinaitic  lakes  belong  to  an  epoch  when  the  waters  of  the 
Mediterranean  and  of  the  Red  Sea  rose  to  a  level  consider- 
ably higher  than  at  present ;  and  when,  consequently,  there 
was  less  fall  for  the  inland  waters  in  an  outer  direction.  The 
evidence  of  a  submergence,  to  a  depth  of  a  least  200  feet,  is 
abundantly  clear  in  the  occurrence  of  raised  beaches  or 
sea  beds  with  shells,  corals,  and  crinoids,  of  species  still 
living  in  the  adjoining  waters.  The  raised  beaches  of  the 
Mediterranean  and  Red  Sea  coasts  have  been  observed  by 
the  officers  of  the  Ordnance  Survey,  and  by  Fraas,  Lartet, 
Schweinfurth,  Post,  and  others.  They  were  observed  by 
members  of  the  Expedition  at  the  southern  extremity  of  the 
Wady  el  Arabah,  and  shells  and  corals  were  found  round  the 
camp  of  the  3rd  December  at  an  elevation  of  about  130  feet 
above  the  Gulf  of  Akabah. 

These  ancient  sea  beds  are  represented  in  the  Egyptian 
area  by  the  old  coast-line  of  220  feet,  discovered  by  Fraas 
along  the  flanks  of  the  Mokattam  Hills  above  Cairo,  and 
recently  described  by  Schweinfurth.  (Uber  die  geol. 
schichtungliederung  de.  Mokattam  bei  Cairo  ;  Zeit.  d. 
Deuts.  Geol.  Gcssel,  1883.)      The  period  in  which  the  sea 

K 


146  TWENTY-ONE  Yf.ARS'   WORK. 

rose  to  this  level  may  be  stated  in  general  terms  as  the 
Pliocene,  but  it  continued  downwards  till  more  recent  times ; 
and  the  author  believes  that  at  the  time  of  the  Exodus  the 
Gulf  of  Suez  reached  as  far  as  the  Great  Bitter  Lake 
{Quarterly  Statement^  April,  1884).  It  is  scarcely  necessary 
to  observe  that  throughout  the  longer  portion  of  this  period 
of  submergence  Africa  was  disconnected  from  Asia. 

8.  The  Miocene  period  is  not  represented  by  any  strata 
throughout  the  district  traversed  by  the  Expedition.  The 
author  considers  that  in  this  part  of  the  world  the  Miocene 
period  was  one  of  elevation,  disturbance,  and  denudation  of 
strata,  not  of  accumulation.  To  this  epoch  he  refers  the 
emergence  of  the  whole  of  the  Palestine,  and  of  the  greater 
part  of  the  Sinaitic  areas,  from  the  sea^  in  -whiih  the 
Cretaceo-nummulitic  limestone  formations  were  deposited. 
To  the  same  e{)och  also  he  considers  the  faulting  and 
flexuring  of  the  strata  is  chiefly  referable  \  and  notably  the 
formation  of  the  great  Jordanic  line  of  fault,  with  its  branches 
and  accompanying  flexurings  of  the  strata — which  are  very 
remarkable  along  the  western  sides  of  The  Ghor.  These 
phenomena  were  accompanied  and  followed  by  extensive 
denudation,  and  the  production  of  many  of  the  principal 
physical  features  of  the  region  referred  to. 

9.  The  evidences  of  a  Pluvial  period  throughout  this 
region  are  to  be  found  (a)  in  the  remains  of  ancient  lake 
beds,  {b')  in  the  existence  of  terraces  in  the  river  valleys, 
(^)  in  the  great  size  and  depth  of  many  valleys  and  gorges, 
now  waterless  except  after  severe  thunderstorms,  and  {d)  in 
the  vastly  greater  size  of  the  Salt  Sea  (or  Dead  Sea),  which 
must  have  had  a  length  of  nearly  200  English  miles  from 
north  to  south,  at  the  time  when  its  surface  was  at  a  higher 
level  than  that  of  the  Mediterranean  at  the  present  day. 
The  author  considers  that  this  Pluvial  period  extended  from 
the  Pliocene  through  the  post-Pliocene  (or  Glacial)  down 


THE  GEOLOGICAL  SURVEY.  14 


to  recent  times.  As  it  is  known,  from  the  observations  of 
Sir  J.  D.  Hooker,  Canon  Tristram,  and  others,  that 
perennial  snow  and  glaciers  existed  in  the  Lebanon  during 
the  Glacial  epoch,  the  author  infers  that  the  adjoining 
districts  to  the  south  of  the  Lebanon  must  have  had  a 
climate  approaching  that  of  the  British  Isles  at  the  present 
day ;  and  that,  in  a  region  of  which  many  parts  are  over 
2,000  feet  in  elevation,  there  must  have  been  abundant 
rainfall.  Even  when  the  snows  and  glaciers  of  the  Lebanon 
had  disappeared,  the  effects  of  the  colder  climate  which  was 
passing  away  may  be  supposed  to  have  remained  for  some 
time,  and  the  vegetation  to  have  been  more  luxuriant  down 
to  within  the  epoch  of  human  habitation.  The  author's 
views  generally  coincide  with  those  of  Theobold  Fisher,  as 
extended  by  him  to  a  mucii  wider  area  (Studien  iiber  das 
Klima  der  Mediterranean  Lander,"  Peterman's  Mittheilun- 
gen,  1879). 

10.  The  author  considers  that  there  a^e  reasons  for 
concluding  that  the  outburst  of  volcanic  phenomena  in 
North-Eastern  Palestine  in  tiie  region  of  the  jaulan  and 
Hauran,  &c.,  has  an  indirect  connection  with  the  formation 
of  the  great  Jordan  Sea  of  the  Pluvial  period.  The  presence 
of  water  in  considerable  volume  is  now  recognised  as 
necessary  to  volcanic  activity,  and  the  author  submits  that 
this  interdependence  was  brought  about  when  the  waters  of 
the  Lake  stretched  as  far  north  as  the  little  Lake  of  Huleh. 
These  waters,  under  a  pressure  of  several  hundred  feet, 
would  find  their  way  into  the  interior  of  the  earth's  crust 
along  the  lines  of  the  great  Jordan  Valley  fnult,  and  of  its 
branches,  and  thus  supply  the  necessary  "steam  power"  for 
volcanic  action.  The  period  when  the  volcanoes  of  the 
Jaulan  and  Hauran  were  in  action  ap])ears  to  have  ranged 
from  the  Pliocene  through  the  post-Pliocene  to  the  beginning 
of  the  recent ;  when,  concurrently  with  the  faUing  away  and 

K   2 


148  TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'   WORK. 

partial  drying  up  of  the  waters  of  the  great  inland  sea,  the 
volcanic  fires  became  extinct  and  the  outpourings  of  basaltic 
lava  ceased  to  flow. 

If  these  views  are  correct,  it  would  seem  that  during  the 
(}lacial  e}^och,  Palestine  and  Southern  Syria  presented  an 
aspect  very  different  from  the  present.  The  Lebanon 
throughout  the  year  was  snow-clad  over  its  higher  elevations, 
while  glaciers  descended  into  some  of  its  valleys.  The 
region  of  the  Hauran,  lying  at  its  Southern  base,  was  the 
site  of  several  extensive  volcanoes,  while  the  district  around, 
and  the  Jordon  Valley  itself,  was  invaded  by  floods  of  lava. 
A  great  inland  sea,  occupying  the  Jordon  Valley,  together 
with  the  existing  comparatively  restricted  sheets  of  water, 
extended  from  Lake  Huleh  on  the  north,  to  a  southern 
margin  near  the  base  of  Samrat  Piddan  in  the  Wady  el 
Arabah  of  the  present  day,  while  numerous  arms  and  bays 
stretched  into  the  glens  and  valleys  of  Palestine  and  Moab 
on  either  hand.  Under  such  climatic  conditions,  we  may 
feel  assured  a  luxuriant  vegetation  decked  with  verdure  the 
hills  and  vales  of  Palestine  and  Arabia  Petrsea  to  an  extent 
far  beyond  that  of  the  present ;  and  amongst  the  trees,  as 
Sir  J.  D.  Hooker  has  shown,  the  cedar  may  have  spread  far 
and  wide. 

II.  The  author  has  not  thought  it  necessary  to  go  into 
the  question  of  the  origin  of  the  salinity  of  the  Salt  Sea,  as 
this  question  is  now  fully  understood.  He  is  obliged  to 
differ  witii  Dr.  Lartet  in  his  view  of  the  origin  of  the  salt 
mountain,  Jebel  Usdum,*  which  he  (the  author),  as  also 
Mr.  Hart,  regards  as  a  portion  of  the  bed  of  the  Salt  Sea, 
when  it  stood  about  600  feet  above  its  present  level.  This 
level  exactly  corresponds  to  that  of  the  terraces,  both  along 
vhe   south   and  east   of  the    Ghor,    formed    of    lacrustine 

*  Lartet  regards  the  strata  of  this  mountain  as  belonging  to  the 
NuTQmulitic  period. 


THE  GEOLOGICAL  SURVEY.  149 

materials.  The  upper  surface  of  Jebel  Usdum  was  examined 
by  Messrs.  Hart  and  Laurence,  of  the  Expedition,  but 
previous  explorers  had  considered  the  sides  inaccessible. 

12.  The  author  concurs  with  previous  writers  in  con- 
sidering that  the  Cretaceous  and  Tertiary  periods  succeeded 
each  other  over  this  region  (at  least  as  far  as  tne  marine 
deposits  are  concerned)  without  any  important  physical 
disturbances ;  in  consequence  of  which  the  limestone 
formations  of  these  periods  are  in  physical  conformity  and 
are  generally  incapable  of  separation  without  prolonged  and 
detailed  examination.  It  seems  probable,  however,  that 
while  the  Nummulitic  limestones  predominate  in  the 
Egyptian  and  Nubian  areas,  those  of  the  Cretaceous  period 
were  more  fully  developed  over  the  area  of  Arabia  Petra^a 
and  Palestine. 

13.  A  complete  series  of  meteorological  observations, 
consisting  of  maxima  and  minima  readings  of  the  thermo- 
meter, and  levels  of  the  barometer,  were  made  by  Mr. 
Laurence,  and  will  ai)pear  in  the  scientific  work  to  follow. 


ISO 


CHAPTER   X. 

SMALLER   EXPEDITIONS. 

From  time  to  time  some  special  piece  of  work  has 
been  taken  in  hand  by  the  Committee  as  opportunity 
offered. 

Thus,  among  other  journeys,  may  be  mentioned : — 

1.  Mr.   Greville   Chester's  visit  to  the  Island  of 
Ruad. 

This  curious  place,  the  ancient  Aradus,  has  been 
very  seldom  visited.  Mr.  Chester's  account  of  it  will 
be  found  in  the  Quarterly  Statement,  p.  218,  1875. 

2.  Mr.  Greville  Chester's  visit  to  the  cities  of  the 
Delta  and  the  Lacus  Serbonicus. 

This  journey  will  be  found  in  the   Quarterly  State 
T'lcnt,  p.  133,  1880. 

3.  Warren's  Lebanon  and  Anti-Lebanon. 

This  was  a  summer  visit  to  escape  the  great  heats 
of  Jerusalem.  The  stay  in  the  hills  was  utilized  by 
sketching  and  planning  a  great  number  of  the  ruined 
Temples,  the  summit  of  Hcrmon,  &c. 

4.  Captain  Condcr's  discovery  of  Kadesh  of  the 
Ilittitcs.    Quarterly  Statement,  s.^'^i  and  1882. 


SMALLER  EXPEDITLONS.  151 

The  following  is  Captain  Conder's  own  account  of 
this  discovery : — 

Before  detailing  our  observations    on    the    spot,  it  will 
perhaps  be  best  briefly  to  explain  the  reasons  why  special 
interest  attaches  to  this  site.     The  conquest  of  the  great 
eighteenth  and  nineteenth  dynasties  of  Egyptian  kings,  in 
the  fifteenth  and  fourteenth  centuries  before  Christ,  extended 
over  the  greater  part  of  Palestine  and  Syria,   and  even  as 
far    as    Asia    Minor.       Amongst    their    most    formidable 
opponents  were  the  Kheta,  a  light-coloured  hairless  people, 
wearing  high  caps  and  dresses  somewhat  similar  to  those  of 
the  Assyrians,  but  specially  distinguished  by  their  pointed 
and  turned  up  boots,  like  the  modern  Turkish  slipper.     The 
Kheta  are  by  most  antiquarians  identified  with  the  Hittites 
who  inhabited  northern  Syria  (Joshua  i.  4),  and  who  had 
monarchs  of  their  own  in  the  time  of  Solomon  (i  Kings 
X.  29  ;  2  Kings  vii.  6).     Thothmes    III   encountered  these 
formidable  mountaineers  in  his  expedition  against  Meggido, 
and  one  of  the  pylons  at   Karnak,   discovered  by  the  late 
Mariette  Bey,  gives  a  list  of  towns,  including  the   names  of 
Kinnesrin,  Aradus,  Aleppo,   and  other  places  in  Northern 
Syria  conquered  by  Thothmes  III.  after  his  subjugation  of 
the  plains  of  Palestine  and  Galilee. 

The  most  important  contest  was,  however,  that  between 
Rameses  II.  and  the  Hittites,  in  the  fifth  year  of  the 
Egyptian  monarch's  reign,  when  he  marched  against  the 
city  of  Kadcsh  on  Orontes.  A  formidable  league  was 
formed  to  oppose  him.  The  Wysians,  the  Teurcians,  the 
Dardanians,  the  inhabitants  of  Aradus,  Aleppo,  and  Car- 
chemish,  and  even  the  Trojans  (Iluna),  and  the  tribes  of 
Mesopotamia  (Naharain),  are  said  to  have  gathered  to  the 
Hittite  standard,  with  many  other  unknown  tribes.  On 
the   hieroglyphic    pictures   the   Semitic  bearded  allies  are 


^52  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'    WORK. 

distinguished  by  dress  and  arms  from  the  beardless  Hittites, 
who  are  supposed  by  some  anticjuarians  to  have  belonged 
to  a  Turanian  or  Turkoman  race  from  Asia  Minor,  which 
had  overrun  and  subjugated  the  fertile  plains  of  the  Orontes, 
and  had  even  penetrated  to  the  very  borders  of  the  Egyptian 
territory. 

According  to  the  ordinary  chronology,  the  expedition  of 
Rameses  II.  occurred  while  Israel  was  being  oppressed  by 
Jabin,  King  of  Hazar,  with  his  chariots  of  iron  ;  and,  as  it 
is  clear  from  Egyptian  records  that  the  Canaanites  were 
allies  or  tributaries  of  the  Egyptians  at  this  period,  it  is 
highly  probable  that  the  iron  chariots  came  from  Egypt, 
and  belonged  to  that  formidable  force  of  chariots  which 
Rameses  brought  up  to  the  plains  of  Kadesh  to  subdue  the 
Hittite?.  Tae  route  pursued  by  Rameses  was  no  doubt 
controlled  by  the  impossibility  of  crossing  rugged  mountains 
with  a  force  of  chariots,  and  the  road  which  we  know  him 
to  have  followed  either  on  his  return  or  on  his  advance — 
and  probably  on  both  occasions — led  along  the  sea-coasts 
towards  Tripoli,  passing  the  Dog  River  north  of  Beyrout, 
where  three  tablets  carved  in  the  rocks  by  his  order  still 
exist. 

Thothmes  III.,  who  had  attacked  Kadesh  in  the  thirtieth 
year  of  his  reign,  founded  a  strong  fortress  near  Aradus 
(er  Riiad)  and  Zamira  (es  Sumra),  near  the  River  Eleu- 
therus),  at  the  foot  of  Eebanon,  and  it  seems  probable  that 
Rameses  would  have  advanced  from  the  same  fortress — 
that  is  to  say,  from  the  western  plam  across  the  pass  which 
separates  the  Lebanon  from  the  Ansieriyeh  mountains,  and 
leads  from  Tripoli  to  Homs. 

The  town  of  Kadesh  on  Orontes  is  generally  said  to  have 
been  on  an  island  in  a  lake  ;  but  the  representation  in  the 
Ramessum  at  'I'hebes  of  the  great  battle  between  Rameses 
II.  and  the  Hittites  appears  rather  to  show  a  fortress  sur- 


SMALLER  EXPEDITIONS.    ■  153 

rounded  by  a  river  and  situated  not  far  from  the  borders  of 
a  lake.  The  name  of  this  river  in  the  hieroglyphs  is 
Arunatha,  or  Hanruta,  and  the  city  is  described  as  lying 
"  on  the  western  bank  of  Hanruta  at  the  lake  of  the  land 
of  the  Amorites." 

The  various  references  to  Kadesh  on  Orontes  were 
kindly  collected  for  me  in  1880  by  the  Rev.  H.  G. 
Tomkins.  The  portion  of  the  great  battle-piece  repre- 
senting the  town  is  to  be  found  copied  in  Sir  G.  Wilkinson's 
"Ancient  Egyptians,"  Vol.  I.,  p.  257  The  city  is  shown 
with  a  double  moat  crossed  by  bridges ;  on  the  left  a  broad 
stream  flows  to  the  lake,  but  on  the  right  the  piece  is 
obliterated,  and  it  is  impossible  to  see  whether  the  moat 
ran  all  round,  or  whether  the  town  lay  between  the  junction 
of  two  streams.  Three  higher  and  two  smaller  towers  are 
shown,  and  the  Hittite  army  occupies  the  ground  to  the  left 
of  the  river,  near  the  shores  of  the  lake. 

Mr.  Tomkins  also  called  my  attention  to  another  repre- 
sentation of  the  town  to  be  found  in  the  Denkmaler  of 
Lepsius  (III.,  plates  158,  159),  where  the  plan  is  a  long  oval 
with  a  single  moat.  Three  high  rowers  are  seen  projecting 
above  the  rest,  and  the  moat  leads  downwards  on  the  left, 
and  also  away  on  the  right,  no  bridges  being  shown. 

The  lake,  near  or  in  which  Kadesh  stood,  has  long  been 
identified  with  the  Baheiret  Homs,  or  Baheiret  Koteineh, 
the  lake  6  miles  long  and  2  miles  broad,  through  which  the 
Orontes  passes  between  Riblah  and  Homs,  about  8  miles 
south-west  of  the  latter  town.  This  lake,  according  to  Abu 
el  Feda,  the  geographer,  was  called  in  his  times  Bahr  et 
Kades;  but  the  title  is  no  longer  known,  and  the  actual  site 
of  Kadesh  was  doubtful.  It  is  true  that  an  island  exists  in 
this  lake,  but  the  Egyptian  account  of  the  fight  cannot  be 
understood  easily  on  the  suijposition  that  this  island,  three- 
fourths  of  a  mile  distant   from    the   shore,  was  the    place 


154  TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'   WORK. 

attacked,  and  I  was  never  al)le  to  understand  the  topography 
of  the  battle  until,  when  standing  on  the  true  site  of 
Kadesh,  it  became  suddenly  all  clear. 

The  Egyptian  army  was  arrayed  south  of  the  city  of 
Shabatun,  with  the  brigade  of  Amun  behind  and  the 
brigade  of  Ra  west  of  Shabatun.  Shasu  (or  Arab)  spies 
were  here  brought  before  the  Pharaoh  and  gave  false  intel- 
ligence to  the  effect  that  the  King  of  the  Hittites  was  far 
away,  near  Aleppo,  whereas  he  lay  really  in  ambush  behind 
the  town  of  Kadesh.  Ramcses  accordingly  began  to 
descend  towards  the  region  north-west  of  Kadesh,  and  there 
halted  to  rest.  His  scouts  here  informed  him  of  the  secret 
which  they  had  extorted  from  some  Hittite  prisoners,  and  the 
forces  near  Shabatun  was  ordered  to  advance.  The  King 
of  the  Hittites  passed  over  the  ditch  south  of  Kadesh  and 
fell  upon  and  routed  the  brigade  of  Ra,  which  retreated 
"  on  the  road  upwards  to  the  place  where  the  king  was." 
Rameses  was  thus  attacked  on  his  right  flank,  and  his 
retreat  cut  off  by  2,500  chariots  of  the  allies.  He,  however, 
charged  the  Hittites,  and  drove  them  before  him  to  the 
Orontes,  where  many  of  their  soldiers  and  chariots  were 
lost,  and  where  the  king  of  Aleppo  was  drowned.  The 
battle  is  said  to  have  been  "in  the  plain  of  the  land  of 
Kadesh."  On  the  following  morning,  Rameses  attacked  the 
city,  which  yielded  to  him,  and  a  peace  was  made  with  the 
Hittite  king  and  written  on  a  plate  of  silver,  the  text  of 
which  venerable  treaty  remains  to  the  present  day  preserved 
in  the  official  account  of  this  campaign. 

Such,  then,  was  the  problem  to  be  solved — the  discovery 
of  a  moated  city  on  Orontes  near  the  lake  of  Homs,  in  such 
a  position  as  to  agree  with  the  minute  description  of  the 
Egyptian  scribe.  This  site  we  lit  upon  unexpectedly  in  the 
imjwrtant  ancient  city  generally  known  as  Tell  Neby 
Mendeh,  situate  on   the  left  bank  of  Orontes  about    four 


SMALLER  EXPEDLTLONS. 


155 


English  miles  south  of  the  lake  of  Horns  :  for  we  discovered 
that  the  name  Kades  was  known  to  all  the  inhabitants  of  the 
vicinity  as  applying  to  extensive  ruins  on  the  south  side  of 
this  great  Tell,   while  Neby  Mandeh   is   the  name  of  an 


LAKE        OF        HOMS 

Compass    Sketch 


9  Ihrrttin 
KoTe  innti 


trades 


Seal*    4   tlilet  to  an    Inch. 
-1 i t  i  f 


«  «./m 


important  sacred  shrine  on  the  highest  part  of  the  hill,  close 
to  which  a  small  Arab  village  has  now  grown  up.  Not  only 
is  the  name  of  Kadesh  thus  preserved,  but  in  looking  down 
from  the  summit  of  the  Tell,  we  appear  to  see  the  very 
double  moat  of  the  Egyptian  picture,  for  while  the  stream 
of  Orontes  is  dammed  up  so  as  to  form  a  small  lake,  some 
50  yards  across  on  the  south-east  of  the  site,  a  fresh  brook 


156  7  Jl  ENTYONE   YEARS'  WORK. 

flows  on  the  west  and  north  to  join  the  river,  and  an  outer 
line  of  moat  is  formed  by  earthen  banks,  which  flank  a  sort 
of  a(iueduct  parallel  with  the  main  stream.  The  united 
waters  flow  northwards  from  the  Tell,  and  fall  into  the  lake 
of  Homs.  Thus  only  on  the  south  is  Kadesh  not  naturally 
protected  with  a  wet  ditch,  and  the  moat  may  very  possibly 
have  formerly  been  completed  by  cutting  a  cross  channel 
from  Orontes  to  the  northern  stream.  '■ 

In  addition  to  the  Society's  work  proper,  we  have 
received  for  publication,  from  time  to  time,  most 
valuable  observations  and  notes  of  travel  and  dis- 
covery, by  a  great  many  travellers,  especially  by  Sir 
Charles  Wilson,  Mr.  Laurence  Oliphant,  Mr.  Guy  Le 
Strange,  Rev.  F.  W.  Holland,  Dr.  Selah  Merrill,  and 
Dr.  Clay  Trumbull,  and  several  valuable  papers  by 
Dr.  Chaplin. 


IS7 


CHAPTER   XI. 

THE   MONUMENTS   OF   THE   COUNTRY. 

I.  Jerusalem. 

The  principal  monuments  in  the  Holy  City  {see 
"  Survey  of  Western  Palestine,"  the  "  Jerusalem " 
volume,  "Architectural  History  of  Jerusalem,"  p.  5- 
1 16)  are  as  follows  : — 

The   walls   of   the  Upper    City.     The  great   rock- 


Tomb  of  Nicodemus. 


158  TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'   WORK. 

scarps  may  be  as  old  as  the  time  of  David,  eleventh 
century  B.C. 

The  so-called  tomb  of  Nicodemus  west  of  the 
rotunda  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre  Church.  This  has 
been  proposed  for  the  burial  place  of  David,  Solomon, 
and  the  more  famous  of  the  succeeding  kings.  Its 
form  is  that  of  the  oldest  class  of  Jewish  tombs. 
The  identification  depends  first  of  all  on  the  course 
of  the  Second  Wall  which  must  be  proved  to  include 
the  tomb  within  it. 

The  great  tunnel  from  the  Upper  Spring  to  the 
Pool  of  Siloam  is  certainly  older  than  the  captivity. 
The  inscription  lately  found  in  it  is  believed  to  refer 
it  to  Hezekiah  (2  Chronicles  xxxii.  4,  30). 

The  Wall  of  Ophel,  discovered  by  Captain  Warren, 
is  at  least  as  old  as  the  time  of  Nehemiah. 

The  rocky  scarp  of  the  Tower  of  Baris,  identified 
by  Wilson  and  Warren  with  the  scarp  now  existing 
at  the  north-west  angle  of  the  Haram,  is  at  least  as 
old  as  the  second  century  B.C. 

The  "  Cotton  Grotto  "  was  a  quarry  used  probably 
by  Solomon,  certainly  by  Herod. 

The  old  rock-cut  monuments  in  the  Kedron  Valley 
probably  belong  to  the  Hasmonean  period,  i.e.^  the 
second  century  B.C. 

The  so-called  "  Tombs  of  the  Kings  "  are  supposed 
to  be  the  sepulchre  of  Queen  Helena  of  Adiabene 
and  her  sons. 


THE  MONUMENTS  OF  THE  COUNTRY-  159 

The  so-called  "  Tombs  of  the  Judges  "  are  said  by 
the  Jews  to  be  the  tombs  of  the  chiefs  of  the  Sanhe- 
drim, also  of  the  Hasmonean  period. 

The  Temple  walls,  now  the  lower  courses  of  the 
wall  of  the  Haram  Area,  are  believed  by  Captain 
Conder  to  have  been  entirely  reconstructed  by  Herod. 
Sir  Charles  Wilson  has  discussed  the  masonry  of 
these  walls  in  a  paper  published  in  the  Quarterly 
Statement  of  January,  1881.  The  subject  is  also 
treated  by  Sir  Charles  Warren  in  the  "Jerusalem" 
volume. 

"  Hezekiah's  Pool  "  is  supposed  to  be  the  Pool 
Amygdalon  of  the  "Towers"  mentioned  by  Josephus, 
5  "  Wars,"  xi.  4.  It  is  in  that  case  at  least  as  old 
as  the  Herodian  period. 

The  low  level  aqueduct  from  Bethlehem  was  con- 
structed by  Pontius  Pilate. 

Besides  these  monuments,  the  subterranean  passage 
discovered  by  Warren,  the  chambers  at  and  about 
Wilson's  Arch,  the  substructures  discovered  by  him 
in  and  round  the  walls  of  the  Haram,  the  double 
Souterrain  north-west  of  the  Haram,  with  its  passage 
leading  to  the  Haram  Wall,  part  of  the  "  Tower 
of  David  "  are  probably  all  prs-Christian. 

The  present  walls  appear  to  have  been  built  on  the 
same  lines  as  those  of  Hadrian,  A.D.  136.  The  Ecce 
Homo  Arch  is  also  supposed  to  be  of  his  construction 
and  the  Birket  Israil  is  also  attributed  to  him  by  some. 


l6o  TWEWTY-ONE   YEARS'   WORK. 

The  Basilica  of  the  Anastasis,  built  by  Constan- 
tine,  has  been  long  destroyed  and  replaced  by  succes- 
sive churches,  of  which  the  present  Church  of  the 
Holy  Sepulchre  is  the  last. 

The  Dome  of  the  Rock  was  built,  according  to  all 
the  Arabic  historians,  by  Abd  el  Melek,  in  the  year 
688,  A.D.  It  is  allowed,  however,  that  he  employed 
Byzantine  architects. 

The  Mosque  el  Aksa  was  built  by  Justinian,  under 
the  name  of  the  Basilica  of  St.  Mary,  and  was  much 
altered  by  Abd  el  Melek  and  his  successors. 

A  history  of  all  the  successive  buildings  in  the  city 
will  be  found  in  the  "Jerusalem"  volume  already  re- 
ferred to.  The  remaining  monuments  are  the  Golden 
Gate,  the  Double  Gate,  the  vaults  called  Solomon's 
Stables,  the  Robinson's  Arch,  the  Birkel  el  Mamilla, 
and  the  Birkct  es  Sultan,  the  Pool  of  Bathsheba,  the 
Virgin's  Fountain,  the  Pool  of  Siloam,  Bir  Eyub,  the 
so-called  Gate  Gennath,  &c. 

II.  Ihe  Moabite  stone. 

On  the  19th  day  of  August,  in  the  year  1868,  the 
Rev.  F.  A.  Klein,  a  missionary  of  the  Church  Mis- 
sionary Society,  found  the  stone  at  Dhiban.  Mr. 
Klein,  though  in  the  service  of  an  English  society 
and  a  clergyman  of  the  Church  of  England,  was  a 
French  subject,  being  a  native  of  Strasburg,  at  that 
time  a  French  town.  Most  unfortunately,  Mr.  Klein 
withheld    his    discovery    from   his    countryman     IM. 


THE  MONUMENTS  OF  THE  COUNTRY.  i6x 

Clermont  Ganneau,  who,  had  he  been  left  alone, 
would  certainly  have  obtained  an  exact  copy,  and 
probably  have  secured  it.  With  equal  want  of 
judgment,  he  withheld  it  from  his  own  colleagues, 
and  from  the  English  Bishop.  They  would  have 
communicated  it  to  Captain  Warren,  then  in  the  city. 
He  would,  if  any  man,  have  been  able  to  get  the 
monument  brought  across  the  Jordan.  But  he  went 
to  the  German  Consul,  Dr.  Petermann. 

Here  was  the  grand  mistake  of  the  whole  business. 
Either  Captain  Warren  or  M.  Clermont  Ganneau  could 
have  got  up  the  stone,  whole  and  uninjured,  for  a  few 
napoleons,  because  the  Arabs  ivet-e  zvJiolly  un- 
acquainted with  its  value.  One  or  two  attempts  were 
secretly  made  by  Dr.  Petermann  to  get  the  stone  by 
means  ot  native  agents.  They  failed,  and  doubly 
failed,  because  they  taught  the  Arabs  the  value  of  the 
stone.  Then  an  appeal  was  made  to  the  Turkish 
Government — the  most  fatal  mistake  of  all ;  for  the 
stone  was  in  the  possession  of  Beni  Humaydah  (not 
the  Beni  Hamidah,  as  stated  by  error  in  the  article 
on  the  Moabite  Stone  in  the  "  Recovery  of  Jerusa- 
lem "),  the  wildest  of  the  wild  tribes  to  the  east  of 
Jordan.  They  were  smarting,  too,  at  the  time  from 
the  effects  of  the  Belka  Expedition,  led  by  Rashid 
Pasha  in  person  ;  and,  says  Captain  l^urton,  "  know- 
ing what  a  dragonnade  meant,  they  were  in  paroxysms 

of  terror  at  the  idea  of  a  raid." 

L 


1 62  TWENTY-ONE    YEARS'   WORK. 

The  secret  by  this  time  had  oozed  out,  and  was 
perfectly  well  known  to  Captain  Warren,  the  Rev. 
Dr.  Barclay,  and  M,  Clermont  Ganneau.  It  was  de- 
cided by  Captain  Warren  that  it  would  be  best  at 
this  point  to  leave  the  matter  in  the  hands  of  Dr. 
Petermann.  Observe  that  any  interference  on  his  part 
would  have  probably  tended  to  complicate  matters, 
and  might  have  led  to  a  still  earlier  destruction  of  the 
monument.  In  the  spring  of  1869,  Captain  Warren, 
with  his  party,  went  to  the  Libanus.  Dr.  Petermann, 
too,  left  Jerusalem  for  Berlin,  after  personally  assur- 
ing M.  Ganneau  tJtat  the  whole  affair  had  fallen 
through.  Captain  Warren  away,  and  the  Prussians 
having  desisted  from  their  endeavours,  the  coast  was 
clear  for  M.  Clermont  Ganneau. 

M.  Ganneau  got  a  squeeze  of  the  whole — in  rags 
it  is  true,  but  still  a  squeeze.  Then  came  the  catas- 
trophe. The  wild  Arabs,  terrified  at  the  prospect  of 
another  raid,  angry  at  the  probable  loss  of  a  stone 
which  possessed  supernatural  powers  in  their  eyes, 
lit  a  fire  under  the  priceless  relic,  threw  cold  water  on 
it  when  it  was  red-hot,  and  so  smashed  it  into  pieces. 
Captain  Warren  obtained  squeezes  of  the  two  larger 
fragments ;  and  then  the  work  of  decipherment,  history, 
controversy,  and  recrimination  began.  After  all  that 
has  been  said  as  to  its  history,  one  thing  is  clear: 
the  blame  of  its  destruction  rests  neitJier  with  Captain 
Warren  nor  witJi  M.  Clermont  Ganneau.     Had  Mr. 


THE  MONUME.VTS  OF  THE  COUNTRY.  163 

Klein  gone  openly  in  the  first  instance  to  the  former, 
there  is.  not  the  slightest  doubt  that  this  most  invalu- 
able monument  would  be  now  l\'ing,  intact  and  entire, 
in  the  British  Museum,  in  the  Louvre,  or  in  Berlin. 
No  matter  where,  provided  only  it  had  been  saved. 

For  it  is  a  monument  which  yields  in  importance 
to  none  yet  found.  It  is  a  narrative  by  a  Moabite 
king  of  his  battles  and  conquests.  It  is  like  another 
page  added  to  the  Bible.  It  takes  us  back  to  the 
time  of  King  Omri  and  King  Ahab  ;  and  it  takes  us 
nearer  to  the  origin  of  our  own  alphabet  than  any 
other  document  yet  discovered.  In  every  way  it  is 
a  gain.  It  has  a  value  historical,  a  value  geographical, 
a  value  linguistic,  a  value  theological,  a  value  paleeo- 
graphic.  It  has  this  value,  mutilated  as  it  is.  It 
would  be  priceless  indeed,  could  we  recover  enough 
of  the  upper  surface  to  read  it  without  doubt  or  hesi- 
tation. The  number  of  letters  on  the  monument  was 
a  little  over  1,000.  The  number  preserved  is  669. 
Subjoined  is  the  translation  given  by  M.  Clermont 
Ganneau,  June,  1870: — 

I  am  Mesa,  son  of  Chamosgad,  King  of  Moab,  the 
Dibonite.  |  My  father  reigned  thirty  years,  and  I  have 
reigned  after  my  father.  And  I  have  built  this  sanctuary 
for  Chamos  in  Qarha  [sanctuary  of  salvation],  for  he  has 
saved  me  from  all  aggressors  and  has  made  me  look  upon 
all  my  enemies  with  contempt.  | 

Omri  was  King  of  Israel,  and  oppressed  Moab  during 
many  days,  and  Chamos  was  irritated  at  his  aggressions.  | 

L   2 


1 64  TWENTY-ONE    YEARS'  WORK. 

And  his  son  succeeded  him,  and  lie  said,  he  also,  "  I  will 

oppress  Moab."  |  In  my  days  I  said  "  I  will  .  .  .  him 

and  I  will  visit  him  and  his  house."  [  And  Israel  was  ruined, 
ruined  for  ever.  Omri  gained  possession  of  the  land  of 
Medeba.  |  And  he  dwelt  there  .  .  .  [Ahab]  his  son  lived 
forty  years,  and  Chamos  made  him  [perish]  in  my  time.  [ 

Then  I  built  Baal  Meon  and  constructed  Qiriathaim.  | 

And  the  men  of  Gad  dwelt  in  the  country  of  [Ataro]th 
from  ancient  times,  and  the  King  of  Israel  had  built  the 
city  of  Ataroth.  |  I  attacked  the  city  and  I  took  it,  |  and  1 
killed  all  the  people  of  the  city,  as  a  spectacle  to  Chamos 
and  to  Moab,  |  and  I  carried  away  from  there  the  .  .  .  and 
I  dragged  it  to  the  ground  before  the  face  Chamos  at 
Qerioth,  |  and  I  brought  there  the  men  of  Saron  (or  of 
Chofen)  and  the  men  of  Maharouth  (?). 

And  Chamos  said  to  me,  "  Go ;  take  Nebah  from 
Israel."  |  I  went  by  night,  and  I  fought  against  the  city  from 
dawn  to  midday,  |  and  I  took  it :  and  I  killed  all,  seven 
thousand  [men,  and  I  carried  away  with  me]  the  women 
and  the  young  girls ;  for  to  Astar  Chamos  belongs  the 
consecrati  jn  of  women  ;  |  and  I  brought  from  there  the 
vessels  of  Jehovah,  and  I  dragged  them  on  the  ground 
before  the  face  of  Chamos.  | 

And  the  King  of  Israel  had  built  Yahas,  and  resided 
there  during  his  war  with  me.  |  And  Chamos  drove  him 
from  before  my  face  :  I  took  from  Moab  two  hundred  men 
in  all  ;  I  made  them  go  up  to  Yahas,  and  I  took  it  to  annex 
it  to  Di[)on.  | 

It  is  I  who  have  built  Qarha,  the  Wall  of  the  Forests 
and  the  Wall  of  the  Hill.  |  I  have  built  its  gates,  and  I  have 
built  its  towers.  I  I  have  built  the  palace  of  the  king,  and 
have  constructed  the  prisons  of  the  ...  in  the  midst  of  the 

city.  I 

And  there  were  no  wells  in  the  interior  of  the  city  in 


THE  MONUME.YTS  OF  THE  COUNTRY.  165 

Qarha  :  and  I  said  to  all  the  people,  "  Make  you  every  man 
a  well  in  his  house,"  [  and  I  dug  |  cisterns  for  Qarha  for  |  .  .  . 
of  Israel.  | 

It  is  I  who  have  built  Aroer,  and  made  the  road  of 
Arnon.  ( 

It  is  I  who  have  built  Beth  Bamoth,  which  was 
destroyed.  |  It  is  I  who  have  built  Bosor  which  (is  power- 
ful) .  .  .  Dibon  of  the  military  chiefs,  for  all  Dibon  was 
submissive,  j  And  I  have  filled  .  .  .  with  the  cities  which  I 
have  added  to  the  land  (of  Moab).  | 

And  it  is  I  who  have  built  .  Beth  Diblathain,  and  Beth 
Baal  Meon,  and  I  have  raised  there  the  .  .  .  the  land.  |  And 
Horonaim,  he  resided  there  with .  .  .  |  And  Chamos  said  to 
me,  "  Go  down  and  fight  against  Horonaim."  |  .  .  .  Chamos 
in  my  day  .  ,  .  the  year  .... 

III.  The  stone  of  Zohcleth. 

The  following  is  M.  Clermont  Ganneau's  account  of 
the  discovery  : — 

Nearly  in  the  centre  of  the  line  along  which  stretches  the 
village  of  Si  loam,  there  exists  a  rocky  plateau  surrounded 
by  Arab  buildings,  which  mask  its  true  form  and  extent ; 
the  western  face,  cut  perpendicularly,  slightly  overhangs  the 
valley.  Steps  rudely  cut  in  the  rock  enable  one  to  climb  it, 
not  without  difficulty,  and  so  to  penetrate  directly  from  the 
valley  to  the  midst  of  the  village.  By  this  road,  trouble- 
some, and  even  dangerous,  pass  habitually  the  women  of 
Siloam,  who  come  to  fill  their  vessels  at  the  so-called 
"  Virgin's  Fount  "  (Ain  Sitti  Mariam,  Immed-deraj ).  Now, 
this  passage  and  the  ledge  of  rock  m  which  it  is  cut  are 
called  by  the  fellahin  "  Ez  Zehwki.f."  It  is  impossible  not 
to  be  struck  with  the  absolute  identity  which  this  name 
offers  with  that  of  the  stone  of  /.ohclcth^  which  the  Bible 
(i  Kings  i.  9)  places   near  (~i^^)   Ain   Rogel.     It  is  quite 


1 66  TWENTY-ONE    YEARS'   WORK. 


sufficient,  in  fact,  to  compare  the  Hebrew  and  Arabic  to 
determine  with  what  precision  the  phonetic  elements  corre- 
spond.    The  vocal  type  itself  is  exactly  reproduced,  putting 
aside   an   insignificant  inversion  of  the  sound  6>,  which  in 
Hebrew  precedes,  and  in  Arabic  follows,  the  consonant  H- 
A  homogeneous  transcript  will  present  us  with  this  identity 
in  still  clearer  manner.    Hebrew  :  Zohelet ;  Arabic  :  Zelwelet. 
I  believe,  then,  that  we  can  consider  the  situation  of  the 
stone  of  Zoheleth  definitely  determined.     This  point  fixed 
with  certainty  can  serve  to  determine  the  position  of  many 
others    of   the  highest   interest.       At   present  I    can  only 
indicate  a  few,  proposing  to  return  to  the  question  at  length 
at  some  future  time.     For  example,   it  becomes  extremely 
probable   that    we    must    put    En   Rogel  at   the    Virgin's 
Fountain,  and  not  at  Bir  Eyiib.     In  fact,   Bir  Eyub  is  700 
metres  distant  from  Zehwele,   and  the  Pool  of  Siloam  is 
400  metres  ;  while  the  Virgin's  Fountain,   situated  exactly 
opposite  Zehwele,  is  only  separated  from  it  by  the  breadth 
of  the  valley,   about  60  metres.      I  call  attention  to  the 
importance  of  this  result  in  tracing  the  line  separating  the 
territories   of  Benjamin   and  Judah,  which   passed  by  Am 
Rogel,  and  the  support  which  it  affords  to  Captain  Warren's 
ingenious  theory  of  the  direction  of  this  line. 

I  must  advance  another  fact  which  appears  to  me 
intimately  connected  with  this  remark,  and  to  confirm  it  in 
a  certain  measure.  We  know  the  multiplicity  of  denomi- 
nations under  which  the  great  eastern  valley  of  J  erusalem, 
so  commonly  called  the  Kedron  is  known.  The  fellahin  of 
Siloam  divide  it  into  three  sections,  whii  h  are,  proceeding 
from  north  to  south  :  ist,  Wady  Sitti  Mariam  ;  2nd,  ^\'ady 
Fer'aun  ;  3rd,  Wady  Eyub.  The  name  of  the  intermediate 
part,  which  extends  from  the  south-east  angle  of  the  Haram 
to  the  confluence  at  the  north  of  Blr  Eyub,  is  remarkable  : 
Wady  Fer'aun  that  is,  Fharauh's    Valley.     Now  it  is  well 


THE  MONUMENTS  OF  THE  COUNTRY.  167 


known  that  to  the  xA.rabs,  the  name  of  Pharaoh  simply 
indicates  the  idea  of  something  or  other  of  ancient  times, 
and  it  is  found  with  this  vague  meaning  in  a  crowd  of 
places  which  have  nothing  to  do  with  Egypt,  very  much  as 
in  France,  where  all  Roman  camps  are  for  the  vulgar, 
Caesar's  camps.  Wady  Fer'aun  signifies,  then,  the  valky  of 
the  king,  and  the  region  to  which  this  name  is  applied  is 
precisely  that  which  the  Kiii^s  Gardejis  of  the  Bible  used 
to  occupy. 

IV.  The  inscribed  stone  of  the  Temple. 
M.  Clermont  Ganneau  thus  described  his  discovery 
in  the  AtJiencBiini  of  Jime  lOth,  1871  : — • 

Permit  me  to  make  known,  in  a  few  words,  an 
important  discovery  which  I  have  just  made  in  Jerusalem. 
It  is  one  of  those  tablets  which,  in  the  temple  reconstructed 
by  Herod,  forbade  strangers,  as  Josephus  tells  us,  from 
passing  the  sacred  enclosure — the  prohibition  being  written 
in  Greek  and  Latin.  The  tablet  which  I  have  found  bears 
the  following  inscription  in  Greek  in  seven  lines  : — 

MHOENAAAAOrEMHBEnO 

PEYEZOAIENTOZ  TOYnE 

PITOIEPONTPYMKTOYKAI 

nEPIBOAOYOlAANAH 

00HEAYTOIAITIOZEI: 

TAI^IATOEZAKOAOY 


The  characters  are  monumental  in  size,  and  present  the 
appearance  which  one  would  expect  in  an  inscription  of  the 
period. 


1 68  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'  WORK. 


The  translation  is  : — 

"  No  stranger  is  to  enter  within  the  balustrade  (r^T'^jaK-rot-)  round  the 
temple  and  enclosure.  Whoever  is  caught  will  be  responsible  to  himself 
for  his  death,  which  will  ensue." 

The  iiassage  of  Josephus  to  which  I  have  made  allusion, 
is  as  follows  :  — 

"  When  you  go  through  these  first  cloisters  unto  the  second  (court  of 
the  seven  temples),  there  was  a  partition  (f  pv^a/crof )  made  of  stone  all 
round,  whose  height  was  three  cubits  ;  its  constructi-in  was  very  elegant. 
Upon  it  stood  pillars  at  equal  distances  from  one  another,  declaring  the 
laws  of  purity,  some  in  Greek,  and  some  in  Roman  letters,  that  no 
*  foreigner  should  go  within  that  saiictuarj'.'  "* 

The  connection  between  this  text  and  our  inscription  is 
striking.  The  expressions  and  the  forms  are  similar  :  ^lijceva 
a\\60v\oi>  is  the  exact  equivalent  of  our  fiijCevu'aWo^evTj ; 
"  the  second  iepov,"  says  Josephus,  is  surrounded  by  the 
"  fp('0«A:Tov."  Our  inscription  says  "  the  T/ji'0«/tTov  which  is 
round  the  'hjiov."  The  variant  T/ji'0«fc-7os  is  singular,  and 
probably  points  to  one  of  the  faults  of  pronunciation  in  use 
amongst  the  Jews  speaking  Greek  at  this  period.  We  must 
observe  that  Josephus  does  not  speak  of  the  tragic  fate  which 
menaced  him  who  might  violate  the  rule;  his  silence  is 
certainly  intentional. 

We  may  boldly  affirm  that  this  Greek  inscription  is  not 
only  the  most  ancient,  but  also  the  most  interestmg,  in  all  its 
[)earings,  which  Jerusalem  has  yet  produced.  I  cannot  in 
this  simple  letter  follow  out  all  the  (juestions  which  it  raises  ; 
that  must  be  the  object  of  a  special  memoire.  I  will  confine 
myself  only  to  remark  the  principal  points  which  attach  to 
it  ;  the  fixing  of  a  certain  palseographic  scale  for  Greek 
inscriptions  already  discovered,  or  yet  to  be  discovered,  in 
Jerusalem  ;  the  form  and  dimensions  of  the  tablet,  which 
may  determine  the  use  of  the  three  cubit  balustrade  which 
it  surmounted ;  ap])earance  and  workmanship  of  the  stone, 

*  Whiston's  translation  is  here  given. 


THE  MONUMENTS  OF   THE  COUNTRY.  169 

permitting  us  to  specify  technically  the  blocks  of  Herodian 
work,  and  to  distinguish  them  from  those  cut  at  a  previous 
date  ;  striking  confirmations  of  the  exactness  of  Josephus's 
descriptions ;  authentic  and  contemporaneous  definitions  of 
the  different  parts  of  the  temple  ;  the  T/3ii0a/cTos'  {sored  of  the 
Talmud  ?),  the  'Upov.,  the  TrepiiioXi]  &c.,  &c. 

The  episode  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles  (xxi.  26,  et 
seq.)  throws  on,  as  well  as  receives  from,  this  precious 
inscription  great  light.  Paul,  after  purification,  presents 
himself  in  the  temple ;  the  people  immediately  rise  against 
him,  because  certain  Jews  of  Asia  believed  that  Paul  had 
introduced  into  the  temple  a  Gentile,  Trophimus  of  Ephesus, 
and  had  thus  polluted  the  sacred  place.  They  are  about  to 
put  him  to  death  when  the  Tribune  commanding  at  Fort 
Antonia  intervenes  and  rescues  him  from  the  hands  of  his 
executioners.  The  people  demand  of  the  Tribune  the 
execution  of  the  culprit,  i.e.,  the  "application  of  the  law." 

V.  The  inscription  in  the  Pool  of  Siloam. 

This  inscription,  by  far  the  most  important  of  any 
yet  found  in  Jerusalem,  was  accidentally  discovered  in 
August,  1880.  On  hearing  of  it,  the  Committee  sent 
out  authority  to  Dr.  Chaplin  to  expend  the  money 
required  to  lower  the  water  in  order  to  examine  it 
more  carefully,  and  to  take  copies  of  it.  It  has  been 
examined  and  copied  by  Captain  Conder,  HcrrGuthe, 
M.  Clermont  Ganneau,  Prof.  Sayce,  and  others.  The 
forms  of  the  letters  arc  closely  like  those  of  the 
Moabitc  stone,  the  words  being  divided  by  points. 
A  cast  has  been  taken  of  the  inscription.  The 
translation  is  thus  given  by  Prof.  Sayce  {Quarterly 
Statement,  October,  1881): — 


I70  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'  WORK. 

(i)  Behold  the  excavation  !  Now  this  is  the  history  of 
the  tunnel.     While  the  excavators  were  lifting  up 

(2)  the  pick,  each  towards  the  other;  and  while  there 
were  yet  three  cubits  to  be  broken  through  .  .  .  the 
voice  of  the  one  called 

(3)  to  his  neighbour,  fur  there  was  an  excess  (?)  in  the 
rock  on  the  right.  They  rose  uj:)  .  .  .  .  they  struck  on 
the  west  of  the 

(4)  excavation,  the  excavators  struck,  each  to  meet  the 
other,  pick  to  pick.     And  there  flowed 

(5)  the  waters  from  their  outlet  to  the  Pool  for  a  distance 
of  a  thousand  cubits  ;  and  (three-fourths  ?) 

(6)  of  a  cubit  was  the  height  of  the  rock  over  the  head  of 
the  excavation  here. 

Its  date  is  believed  to  be  that  of  Hezekiah. 

VI.  The  Head  of  Hadrian. 

A  statue  of  Hadrian  erected  on  the  site  of  the 
Holy  of  Holies  in  that  emperor's  reign  was  the  cause 
of  the  last  revolt  under  the  Bar  Cochebas.  The  Head 
of  this  statue  was  found  by  M.  Clermont  Ganneau  in 
Jerusalem,  and  is  here  figured. 

VII.  The  Gaza  Jupiter.  Concerning  this  statue, 
Captain  Conder  wrote  in  1882  from  Constantinople: 

This  great  statue  was  discovered,  in  iSSo,  by  the 
natives  at  Tell  'Ajjul,  south  of  Gaza,  and  we  owe  its 
preservation  to  the  exertions  of  the  Rev.  W.  Shapira, 
the  missionary.  The  Arabs  had  at  once  commenced  to 
break  up  the  statue,  and  had  succeeded  in  greatly  damaging 
the  face.  Mr.  Shnpira  persuaded  the  governor  to  set  a 
guard  over  the  place,  and  the  antiquarians  of  Palestine  owe 


THE  MONUMENTS  OF  THE  COUNTRY. 


171 


Head  of  Hadrian. 

him  a  debt  of  gratitude  for  having  prevented  the  entire 
destruction  of  this  unique  monument.     A  paper  descriptive 


172 


TWENTY-ONE  YEARS"   WORK. 


of  the  statue  will  be  found  in  the  Qtiarterly  Statement., 
with  tlie  measurement  of  its  principal  proportions.  I  now 
send  a  copy  of  the  sketch  which  I  have  just  made  from  the 
original  in  the  porch  of  the 
Stamboul  Museum.  The  sug- 
gestion which  I  ventured  to  make 
at  the  time  seems  to  me  to  be 
fully  borne  out,  and  there  can,  I 
imagine,  be  little  doubt  that  the 
figure  is  intended  for  a  Jupiter. 
The  princijjal  deity  of  Gaza  was 
called  Marna  {i.e.,  t^21»2  "  Our 
I^ord"),  and  was  worshipped  as 
late  as  the  fifth  century  a.d.  (Epi- 
phanius  Adv  Hoeret).  He  was  a 
deity  who  controlled  the  rain,  and 
his  temple  was  destroyed  by  St. 
Porphyirus  (Acta  Sanct).  Accord- 
ing to  Lenormant  he  was  a  god 
similar  to  the  Cretan  Jupiter  and 
the  Phcenician  Eshmun  —  the 
chief  among  a  group  of  seven  or 
eight  deities  ("Lcttres  Assyrio- 
logiques,"  Vol.  II.,  Letter  V.,  p. 
165,  j^^.).  These  seven  Cabiri  or 
"great  ones"  appear  to  have  all 
had  temples  in  Gaza,  That  of  Marna,  destroyed  by  the 
Christians,  was  round,  with  two  outer  porches  or  circles — 
a  kind  of  Druidical  circle  perhaps.  His  other  titles 
were  "the  living,"  "the  eternal,"  "the  universal,"  "the 
everlasting."  It  seems  probable  that  the  statute  at  Con- 
stantinople may  be  that  of  the  Jupiter  iSIarna  of  Gaza. 
The  nose  and  face  have  been  damaged,  but  the  arrange- 
ment of  the  hair  reminds  one  of  the  classic  Jupiter.     The 


The  Gaza  Stalue. 


THE  MONUMENTS  OF  THE  COUNTRY.  173 


right  arm  is  broken  above  the  elbow,  the  left  appears  to 
have  been  sawn  off.  The  figure  was  seated  on  a  bench,  but 
the  legs  have  also  apparently  been  sawn  off  in  front.  These 
mutilations  had  been,  I  believe,  effected  before  the  statue 
was  discovered,  and  it  seemed  to  me  possible  that  the  pious 
pagans  may  have  buried  their  Jupiter  to  save  him  from  the 
Christians,  and  may  have  been  obliged  to  divide  it  for 
facility  of  transport. 

VIII.  The  Gezer  inscriptions. 

The  following  was  written  by  M.  Clermont  Gan- 
neau  in  the  field  after  finding  the  first ;  a  second 
inscription  was  afterwards  discovered. 

But  the  most  important  inscription  of  all,  the  discovery  of 
which  is  the  grand  result  of  this  campaign,  is  that  of  Gezer. 
I  have  already  touched  upon  it  in  a  few  words  written  hastily 
from  Jaffa. 

Here,  then,  are  new  details  on  the  subject,  pending  the 
full  study  which  will  accompany  the  original.  I  send  yon  a 
drawing  of  the  inscription,  made  by  M.  Lecomte  with  his 
accustomed  care  and  ability.  This  may  serve  as  a  basis  tor 
the  observations  of  savants.  I  was  the  first  to  establish  the 
identity  of  Tell  el  Jezer  (ihe  Abu  Shusheh  of  the  maps)  with 
the  royal  Canaanite  city  of  Gezer,  hitherto  vainly  sought  and 
generally  placed  at  Yasur.  I  communicated  this  discovery 
to  different  persons  at  Jerusalem,  and  during  my  last  stay 
in  France  I  had  the  honour  of  reading  before  the  Academy 
of  Inscriptions  a  memoir  on  the  subject,  which  was  only 
partially  published. 

I  now  remember  that,  when  I  had  finished  the  reading, 
the  President  of  the  Academy  asked  me  if  I  had  found  on 
the  spot  any  inscription  confirming  this  identification,  made, 


174  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'  WORK. 


SO  to  speak,  a  priori,  and  having  iox  point  de  depart  ?i  little- 
known  passage  in  Medjr  ed  Din. 

T  was  obliged  to  confess  that  I  had  not  in  support  of  my 
theory  any  proof  of  this  kind,  and  that  I  could  only  quote, 
outside  my  narrow  base,  the  classical  and  critical  arguments 
which  from  the  time  of  Robinson  have  served  to  establish 
the  principal  Biblical  identifications. 

Very  well  ;— this  unhoped-for  proof,  improbable  even  in 
Palestine,  where  not  a  single  corresponding  example  has 
been  met  with,  I  have,  had  the  great  fortune  to  find. 

At  a  very  short  distance  from  Tell  el  Jezer,  on  the  east 
side,  the  text  in  question  exists,  engraved  on  a  slab  of  rock 
nearly  horizontal,  and  very  nearly  two  metres  in  length. 

It  is  bilingual  :  it  begins  with  the  Greek  word  AAKIO  — in 
characters  of  classical  epoch,  immediately  followed  by  the 
Hebrew  letters  of  ancient  square  form,  of  which  nothing,  I 
think,  can  be  made  except  1"fJ  +  ?2nr\- 

In  the  second  word  we  \\:xwt  the  very  name  of  Gezer  just 
as  it  is  writtefi  in  the  Bible. 

As  to  the  first,  I  can  see  nothing  else  than  the  defective 
form  of  72inn-  The  omission  of  the  van  is  perfectly  admis- 
sible considering  the  remote  period  at  which  the  inscription 
was  written. 

As  for  the  signification  of  the  word,  it  is  clearly  that  of 
limit.  The  word  is  not  Biblical,  but  it  is  frequently  employed 
in  the  Talmud  to  determine  the  distance  that  must  not  be 
exceeded  on  the  Sabbath  day — rQ"C?n  TDinH- 

The  Hebrew  inscription  must,  then,  be  translated  as  limit 
of  Gezer. 

Is  this  the  hieratic,  or  simply  the  civil  limit  ? 

Two  facts  appear  to  argue  in  favour  of  the  first 
conjecture  : — 

I.  The  special  acceptation  of  the  word  T^^IHil  ^"  ^^'''^ 
Talmudic  language. 


THE  MONUMENTS  OF  THE  COUNTRY.  175 

2.  The  quality  of  the  city  Gezer  as  belonging  to  the  group 
of  Levitical  cities,  so  that  the  observation  of  the  Sabbatical 
limits  would  be  more  rigorously  observed  than  elsewhere. 

I  have  no  time  to  enter  into  the  still  obscure  question  of 
the  length  of  a  Sabbath  day's  journey.  I  reserve  that  for 
the  special  publication  of  this  precious  text,  which  will 
perhaps  actually  solve  it,  if  it  means  really  the  Sabbatical 
limit  and  not  a  non-religious  boundary. 

I  need  not  recall  the  well-known  passage,  Numbers  xxxv. 
2-34,*  where  the  limits  of  the  Levitical  cities  and  these 
suburbs  are  so  exactly  ordered.  It  may  very  well  be  that  in 
the  same  radius  round  Tell  el  Gezer  we  may  find  at  the 
other  cardinal  points  similar  inscriptions.  I  mean  to  look 
for  them. 

One  particularity  on  which  I  must  insist,  as  it  may 
enlighten  us  on  the  real  destination  of  this  singular  and 
unique  inscription,  is  that  of  its  position.  The  letters  are 
placed  so  as  to  be  read,  not  by  any  one  who  came  from 
Gezer  and  intended  to  cross  the  hieratic  boundary,  but  by 
one  who,  coming  from  without,  sought  to  pass  within.  This 
makes  me  inclined  to  believe  that  we  have  not  simply  a 
warning  for  the  Sabbatic  rest,  but  a  line  of  demarcation 
much  more  important  and  necessary. 

Let  me  recall,  en  passant,  the  fact  that  Gezer  was  a  frontier 
town  of  Ephraim,  though  I  would  not  pretend  to  see  a 
tribe-limit  in  this  city  boundary. 

Gezer  was  a  Levitical  city  (Joshua  xxi.  21).  "They  gave 
[the  Levites  which  remained  of  the  children  of  Kohath] 
Shechem  with  her  suburbs  in  Mount  Ephraim  to  be  a  city 
of  refuge  for  the  slayer  ;  and  Gezer  with  her  suburbs." 

*  Vcr.  5.  "  Ye  shall  measure  from  without  the  city  on  the  side  two 
thousand  cub'ts,  and  on  the  south  side  two  thousand  cubits,  and  on  the 
west  side  two  thousand  cubits,  and  on  the  north  side  two  thousand 
cubits,  and  the  city  shall  be  in  the  midst,"  &c. 


176  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'   WOKK. 

It  is  also  possible  that  the  Sabbatical  limit  was  the  same 
as  the  Levitical. 

However  that  may  be,  our  inscription  fixes  one  point  of 
some  perimeter  about  Gezer.  The  operations  of  measure- 
ment which  we  shall  proceed  to  make  will  perhaps  show  us 
whether  this  radius  is  one,  two,  or  three  thousand  cubits,  or 
whether  it  is  of  the  length  indicated  by  several  authors  as 

that  of  the  oSo?  au^^drov. 

What  is  the  date  of  the  inscription  ?  Palffiographically 
and  historically  it  seems  that  we  may  boldly  assign  it  a  date 
previous  to  Titus  as  a  minimum  limit. 

I  should  not  even  hesitate  to  put  it  at  the  Maccabean 
period  during  which  Gezer  plays  so  important  a  part,  and 
becomes  a  political  and  military  centre.  The  Greek  and 
Hebrew  characters  may  very  well  belong  to  the  first  century 
before  Christ.  The  date,  I  believe,  may  thus  vary  between 
the  two  extreme  points. 

The  name  of  "aXkws  does  not  help  us  in  fixing  it.  Is  it 
the  name  of  a  priest,  or  of  a  governor  of  Gezer  ?  It  indicates 
Hellenised  habits  which  would  be  repulsive  to  the  first 
Asmonseans,  and  which  tend  to  bring  our  inscription  down 
to  Herodian  times,  in  which  Hellenism  was  flourishing. 

As  to  the  truncated  form  a\kio,  that  may  be  explained  by 
the  fact  of  the  two  texts,  Hebrew  and  Greek,  being  placed 
end  to  end  on  the  same  line  ;  and  commencing  one  at  the 
right  and  the  other  at  the  left,  the  engraver  carving  his 
Greek  word  after  the  other,  could  not  find  room  for  the 
whole  word,  his  O  abutting  on  the  ~1  of  the  word  Gezer. 
Besides,  a  broken  place  in  the  rock  between  the  A  and  the  K 
took  up  a  portion  of  the  space  at  his  disposal. 

I  think  that  the  limit  of  the  protecting  boundary  was  not 
marked  only  by  this  inscription  on  the  level  of  the  ground, 
and  difficult  to  see,  but,  besides,  by  some  salient  sign,  some 
landmark,  or  cifpits  pomcErius,  which  has  disappeared,  the 


t/3 


=3 


c 
o 

■J5 


:'i»W*^< 


THE  MONUMENTS  OF  THE  COUNTRY.  177 

the  traces  of  which  I  intend  to  look  for.  The  existence  of 
indicative  marks  seems  pointed  out  clearly  in  Numbers  xxxv. 
4-26. 

To  sum  up,  this  discovery  has  for  its  chief  results — 

1.  The  finding  of  a  Hebrseo-Greek  text  of  ancient  date, 
very  important  in  Jewish  epigraphy. 

2.  The  positive  confirmation  that  Gezer  is  really  at  Tell 
el  Jezer,  as  I  had  shown  from  critical  considerations. 

This  startling  confirmation  of  an  identification  obtained 
solely  by  an  inductive  method  has  its  weight  in  other  Biblical 
identifications  established  on  the  same  principles,  gives  them 
legitimacy,  so  to  speak,  and  confirms  the  degree  of  credi- 
bility which  belongs  to  them. 

3.  The  probable  solution  of  the  much  disputed  contro- 
versy of  the  Sabbath  day's  journey  and  the  hieratic  limits  of 
Levitical  cities. 

4.  A  well-grounded  hope  of  finding  in  the  environs  of 
Gezer  and  the  other  Levitical  cities  analogous  inscriptions. 

The  whole  of  the  discoveries  at  and  about  Gezer 
are  fully  described,  with  plans  and  a  map,  in  the 
"Survey   of   Western     Palestine,"    Memoirs    II.,    p. 

428-434. 

IX.  The  stone  of  Bethphage. 

This    stone,   with    its    frescoes    representing    the 

raising  of    Lazarus    and   the   disciples    bringing  the 

ass,  is  a  Crusading  monument  discovered  by  Frere- 

Lievin,  copied  by  Captain  Guillemot  and  commented 

upon   by  M.   Clermont  Ganncau.     It  is  curious  and 

interesting,    because    it    is    proved    by    this    learned 

archaeologist  to  have  been  the  traditional   stone    on 

M 


178  :         TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'   WORK'. 


which  Our  Lord  rested  when   He  sent  the  disciples 
"to   the  village  "  (Matthew  xxi.  2). 

X.  The  Hamath  inscriptions.  Copies  of  these  are 
in  the  Society's  collection  at  the  South  Kensington 
Museum.  Since  their  re-discovery,  some  fifteen  years 
ago — they  had  previously  been  seen  by  Burck- 
hardt — many  other  fragments  of  inscriptions  in  the 
same  character  have  been  found.  No  attempt  to  read 
them  has  as  yet  been  generally  accepted.  The  reason 
why  they  were  attributed  to  the  Hittites,  may  be 
found  in  Dr.  Wright's  "  Empire  of  the  Hittites." 

XT.  The  Sassanian  building  at  Amman. 

The  most  important  point  in  the  detailed  survey  of 
Amman,  on  the  East  of  Jordan,  was  the  examination  of 
a  small  building  on  the  top  of  the  citadel  hill  at  'Amman. 
It  had  been  visited  and  described  by  Consul  Finn, 
Colonel  Warren,  and  Canon  Tristram,  but  as  none  of 
these  explorers  were  able  to  remain  very  long  at  this 
site,  it  had  not  been  fully  described.  It  has  generally 
been  supposed  to  be  of  Byzantine  origin,  and  has  been 
variously  described  as  a  church  and  a  mosque.  An  inspec- 
tion of  the  enclosed  plan  and  details  will,  however,  perhaps 
serve  to  show  that  the  building  is  equally  unlike  either  the 
Byzantine  churches,  or  the  Arab  mosques  of  Palestine,  and 
that  it  has,  indeed,  an  unique  character,  and  is  well  worth 
minute  study. 

The  building  stands  in  the  middle  of  the  courtyard  of  the 
Temple,  and  is  irregulady  built,  so  that  the  west  side 
measures  85  ft.,  the  east  81  ft.,  the  south  80  ft.  It  has 
a  central  open  court  33  ft.  scjuare,  from  which  arched 
recesses  open  back,  each  measuring  about   18  ft.   square. 


c 


r: 
■J. 


THE  MONUMENTS  OF  THE  COUNTRY. 


179 


In  the  four  corners  are  small  vaulted  chambers,  and  in  the 
north-west  angle  are  remains  of  a  staircase  whicn  appeals 
to  have  led  ujj  from  the  outside  to  the  roof. 

It  does  not  seem  that  the  central  court  was  ever  roofed 
over.  The  entrance  to  the  building  is  from  the  south,  and 
seems  to  be  of  the  same  date  with  the  main  part  of  the 
buildings,  although  traces  of  reconstruction  may,  perhaps, 
be  suspected  on  the  south  wall.  There  was  another 
entrance  on  the  north,  now  blocked. 

The  main  feature  of  the  building  is,  however,  the 
elaborately   sculptured    ornamentation   of   the    inner  walls. 

The  accompanying  drawings 


will  serve  to  show  the  style  of 
this  ornamentation,  which, 
as  a  whole,  is  quite  unlike 
any  sculpture  found  in  Wes- 
tern Palestine.  The  designs 
differ  on  the  different  walls, 
and  the  sculpture  does  not 
seem  to  have  been  finished, 
as  some  of  the  panels  are 
left  plain  ;  and  the  tracery 
on  the  north  wall  seems  to 
be  incomplete.  The  sculp- 
ture is  in  low  relief  or.  stone 
of  fair  consistency,  taken 
from  the  neighbouring  lime- 


5cdi«  1 00  feet  to  1 1nch. 

Plan  and  Section  ot  Sassanian 
ISuilding. 


Stone  quarries. 

On  either  side  of  the  bold  central  arch  is  a  sculptured 
panel  with  an  arched  head,  standing  on  a  string  course 
with  three  smaller  arch-headed  panels  beneath,  and  three 
others  again  above.  The  bas-reliefs  in  the  larger  panels 
differ  in  each  case,  one  as  shown  reprcsentnig  two  rows  of 
circles   enclosing  geometrical  designs,  wliilc  another  gives 

M   2 


l8o  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS   WORK. 

a  stiff  conventional  tree  pattern  not  unlike  the  sacred  con- 
ventional tree  of  Asshur  which  is  found  on  Assyrian  bas- 
reliefs.  There  is  an  entire  absence  of  any  figures  of  birds  or 
animals,  and  in  this  respect  the  sculpture  differs  from  that  of 
the  famous  Sassanian  Palace  at  Mashita,  discovered  by 
Canon  Tristram,  not  far  from  the  present  site,  although  in 
other  respects  there  is  a  similarity  between  the  two  buildings 
in  detail. 

Among  the  details  will  be  observed  a  flat  dog-tooth 
moulding,  which  somewhat  resembles  the  ornament  applied 
by  the  Crusaders  to  arches  in  their  early  churches  of  the 
1 2th  century, — as,  for  instance,  in  the  beautiful  west  window 
of  the  Muristan  at  Jerusalem,  of  which  a  photograph  was 
taken  by  Lieutenant  Kitchener,  R.E.  The  vine-bunches 
which  occur  in  the  interior  of  some  of  the  lower  panels  are 
also  interesting ;  similar  conventional  vine-patterns  occur 
not  only  on  the  later  Jewish  tombs  of  the  period  when 
Greek  art  influenced  the  native  sculptors,  but  also  in 
Byzantine  tombs  and  chapels  of  the  5th  and  6th  century  in 
Western  Palestine. 

The  most  valuable  features  are,  however,  the  arches  and 
the  pilasters  of  the  panels.  It  is  very  curious  to  note  that 
in  this  small  structure,  the  round  arch,  the  pointed  arch, 
and  the  Moorish  arch  all  occur  together,  the  two  later  forms 
being  in  an  embryonic  condition  which  architects  will 
probably  consider  very  interesting.  The  great  central 
arches,  w-hich  form  the  face  of  the  tunnel-vaults  of  the  four 
recessed  chambers,  appear  to  have  a  very  slight  and  almost 
imperceptible  point  of  which  the  attached  photograph  w-ill 
give  a  fair  idea.  The  shape  is,  indeed,  almost  exactly  the 
same  as  that  of  the  arches  supporting  the  dome  in  the 
Jerusalem  Dome  of  the  Rock.  It  has  long  been  a  subject  of 
debate  whether  the  arches  in  the  latter  building  were  round 
or  pointed.     Those  in  the  outer  arcade,  which  are  covered 


THE  MONUMENTS  OF  THE  COUNTRY.  i8i 

with  ancient  glass  mosaic,  are  round,  those  in  the  inner  arcade 
under  the  dome  have  a  very  shght  and  ahiiost  imperceptible 
point,  as  can  be  seen  in  the  photograph  taken  in  1874  at 
my  request  by  Lieutenant  Kitchener,  where  three  arches 
are  shown  directly  facing  the  spectator.  These  arches  are 
now,  however,  covered  with  marble  casing,  so  that  it  is  not 
quite  certain  whether  the  structure  beneath  may  not  be  a 
round  arch  ;  but  the  new  example  from  'Amman  serves  to 
throw  some  light  on  this  question. 

The  feature  of  the  slender  coupled  columns  with  very 
simple  capitals  is  also  worthy  of  special  attention,  as  will  be 
noticed  immediately.  The  Moorish  form  of  the  interior 
of  the  arches  above  the  larger  panels  will  be  noticed  on  the 
elevation. 

In  his  valuable  critique  on  the  Palace  of  Mashita,  Mr. 
Fergusson  compares  that  building  with  the  Sassanian  archi- 
tecture of  Persia,  instancing  the  great  buildings  of  Tak 
Kesra  and  Taki  Gero  \  and  he  also  draws  attention  to  the 
connection  between  Persian  and  Byzantine  architecture. 
The  elevation  of  Takt-i-Kesra  presents  several  features  of  re- 
markable similarity  to  the  details  of  the  building  on  the  hill 
at  'Amman.  The  great  central  archway  ;  the  walls  panelled 
with  arches  divided  by  coupled  columns  having  a  single  cap  ; 
the  use  of  round,  pointed,  and  stilted  arches  in  one  structure, 
are  common  to  the  two  buildings,  and  the  inference  is 
natural  that  the  'Amman  example  may  prove  to  be  of  Sas- 
sanian origin — an  inference  supported  by  the  existence  of 
the  Mashita  Palace  in  the  same  district,  since  Mr.  Fergusson 
has  decided  that  this  latter  must  be  referred  to  the  time  of 
Chosrocs  II. 

There  is,  however,  one  great  difference  remarked  between 
the  'Amman  building  and  the  Mashita  palace,  namely  tliat 
no  figures  of  birds  or  beasts  occur  in  the  former.  This 
suggests  that  the  'Amman  building  may  probably  be  the 


1 82  TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'   WORK. 

work  of  a  Moslem  people,  and  thus,  perhaps,  one  of  the 
earliest  Arab  structures  subsequent  to  the  conquest  by  Omar, 
The  early  Khalifs,  incU:ding  'Abd  el  Rlelek,  employed 
Greek  architects  in  Syria,  and  Coptic  Christians  in  Egypt,  to 
build  their  early  mosques ;  but  it  is  not  less  certain  that  the 
influence  of  Persian  art  was  strongly  felt  by  the  half-civilised 
Arabs.  The  historian  Ibn  Khaldun,  as  quoted  by  Lane, 
writes  thus  :  "  When  they  ceased  to  observe  the  strict  precepts 
of  their  religion,  and  the  disposition  for  dominion  and 
luxurious  living  overcame  them,  the  Arabs  employed  the 
Persian  nation  to  serve  them,  and  acquired  from  them  the 
arts  and  architecture,  and  then  they  made  loft>  buildings." 
Mr.  Poole  has,  moreover,  pointed  out,  in  commenting  on 
this  passage,  that  probably  the  Persian  influence  had  affected 
the  Greeks  of  the  Eastern  Empire  before  it  reached  the 
Arabs,  and  that  some  of  the  peculiarities  of  Byzantine  art 
may,  perhaps,  be  best  explained  by  comparison  with  Sas- 
sanian  buildings. 

If  the  conclusion  be  considered  correct  that  the  building 
on  the  hill  at  'Amman  is  an  early  specimen  of  Moslem  work 
under  Sassanian  influence,  the  comparison  with  the  Dome 
of  the  Rock  at  Jerusalem  is  instructive  and  interesting. 

In  addition  to  the  peculiarities  of  the  arches  common  to 
the  two  buildings,  it  may  be  noted  that  at  Jerusalem  in  the 
outer  wall  of  the  Dome  of  the  Rock,  we  have  the  same 
feature  of  large  round-headed  panels  (pierced  in  some 
instances  v;ith  windows)  having  above  them  a  second  tier  of 
smaller  panels,  with  simple  coupled  columns  between. 
Probably  also  son^e  resemblance  may  be  recognised  between 
the  details  of  the  ornamentation,  as,  for  instance,  the  con- 
ventional vine-pattern  which  occurs  also  (in  bronze)  on  the 
wooden  architrave  which  spans  the  round  arches  of  the 
arcade  in  the  Dome  of  the  Rock. 

The  Dome  of  the  Rock,  which,  according  to  the  ancient 


THE  MONUMENTS  OF  THE  COUNTRY.  183 

Cufic  inscription  in  the  interior,  was  built  by  Moslems  in 
688  A.D.,  is  a  building  recognized  as  presenting  features  of 
very  Byzantine  appearance.  The  comparison  with  the 
Moslem  building  at  'Amman  may,  perhaps,  be  considered 
to  throw  some  light  on  the  explanation  which  may  finally 
be  expected  of  the  pecularities  of  its  architecture. 

There  are,  unfortunately,  no  traces  of  any  inscription  on 
either  the  mosque  or  the  upper  building  at  'Amman,  beyond 
a  rudely  carved  religious  formula  above  noticed, which  seems 
to  have  been  cut  at  a  late  period  by  an  unskilled  hand. 

It  should  be  noted,  finally,  that  the  Moorish  arch  (a  seg- 
ment of  a  circle  greater  than  half)  not  only  occurs  in  the 
upper  building,  but  seems  also  to  have  been  used  in  the 
arched  ribs  supporting  the  mosque  roof.  The  arches  have 
fallen,  but  the  haunch  stones  in  some  cases  remain,  and  are 
corbelled  out  so  as  to  present  a  reverse  curve,  which  is 
rather  ornamental  than  really  structural. — I'rom  Captain 
Conder's  Reports. 

XII.  The  rude  stone  monuments. 

There  are  but  one  or  two  of  these  in  Western 
Palestine,  but  in  the  East,  so  far  as  it  has  yet  been 
explored  they  abound.  Thus  Captain  Conder  wrote 
in  November,  1881  : — 

In  a  former  report  I  described  briefly  some  of  the  rude 
stone  monuments  which  we  examined  at  Hesban,  but  as  yet 
I  have  not  given  any  account  of  the  still  more  interesting 
groups  which  we  discovered  later,  including  structures  of 
seven  different  kinds,  viz.  :  i.  dolmens  (or  cromlechs)  :  2. 
Menhirs  or  standing  stones ;  3.  cubical  stones  in  circles  or 
standing  alone  ;  4.  Circles  of  rude  stones  piled  m  a  heap ; 
5,  Rude  pillars;  6.  Cairns;  7.  Disk  stones. 

Of  these  the  cromlechs  or  dolmens  (whichever  be  the 
correct  title)  are  the    most  numerous.     In  Wady  Hesban 


1 84 


TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'   WORJC. 


there  are  about  50;  round  Wady  Jideid  there  are  groups 
which  give  together  a  total  of  about  150.  On  the  north  side 
of  the  Zerka  M'ain  there  is  a  large  group,  numbering  some 


Minyeh  Rude  Stone  Monument. 


10 


o 

till 


10 


20 


30  feet 


150.  At  Mount  Nebo  there  are  only  a  very  few  in  connection 
with  a  large  stone  circle  and  cairn.  At  'Amman  we  dis- 
covered 8  in  all,  very  much    scattered.     Near  the  Jabbok 


THE  MONUMENTS  OF  THE  COUNTRY. 


185 


there  is  another  group  not  yet  visited,  and  in  the  Ghor  es 
Seiseban,  for  a  distance  of  about  two  miles,  between  Wady 


\ 


Winepress 

Q 


XMenhir  called 
Hair  el  Mansub 


Hajr  e 


'/eof  ivi6<^' 


Rougrh  Sketcli  of  the  Site  of 
EL  MAREIGHAT 


Kefrein  and  Wady  Hesban,  all  the  spurs  are  covered  with 
dolmens,  numbering  between  200  and  300  in  all,  while 
north  and  south  of  these  limits  not  a  single  specimen  can  be 
found  for  many  miles.  The  total  of  600  to  700  is  thus  divided 
into  seven  very  distinct  groups,  each  occurring  in  the  vicinity 
of  fine  springs,  and  of  hill-tops  commanding  an  extensive 
view ;  and  the  impression  which  I  noted  in  my  former 
report  is  fully  confirmed,  for  the  dolmens  are  not  scattered 
over  the  country  without  system,  but  are  confined  to  localities 
at  considerable  distances  apart,  where  they  are  crowded 
close  together,  generally  appcarmg  to  group  round  a  central 
point  on  a  hill-top. 

Although  no  previous  traveller  has  been  enabled  to 
examine  carefully  all  the  groups  mentioned,  the  discovery  of 
such  monuments  dates  back  more  than  sixty  years,  to  the 


1 86  TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'  WORK. 


time  when  Irby  and  Mangles  made  their  adventurous  journey 
to  Moab  and  Gilead.  At  a  later  period  the  dolmens  have 
been  briefly  described  by  Dr.  Tristram;  and  some  of  the 
menhirs  have  been  visited  and  measured  by  Herr  Conrad 
Schick. 

XIII.  Among  all  the  monuments  of  the  country 
there  is  certainly  none,  if  the  associations  claimed  for 
it  be  allowed,  which  arc  of  greater  interest  than  that 
supposed  by  Captain  Conder  to  be  none  other  than 
the  Golgotha  and  the  Tomb  near  it.  He  says 
{Quarterly  Statement,  1881,  p.  201)  : 

1  find  that  the  identification  of  the  hill  above  Jeremiah's 
Grotto  with  the  probable  site  of  Calvary,  which  depends 
mainly  on  the  fact  that,  according  to  Jewish  tradition,  this 
was  the  ancient  place  of  public  execution,  has  found  favour 
with  a  l.irge  number  of  intelligent  readers.  I  have  already 
explained  that  we  are  indebted  to  Dr.  Chaplin  for  discover- 
ing the  tradition ;  but  there  are  several  facts  in  connection 
with  this  most  interesting  question  which  I  have  only 
recently  ascertained. 

The  modern  Arab  name  of  the  place  is  el  Heidhemnyeh 
("torn  down"),  but  this  is  a  corruption  of  the  earlier 
AdJieiniyeh  as  given  by  Mejr  ed  Din,  and  there  seems  no 
doubt  that  it  is  derived  from  the  tomb  of  a  son  of  the 
famous  Edhem,  a  historical  character.  The  Sheikh  of  the 
Jerusalem  Haram  gave  me  this  explanation,  which  is  con- 
firmed by  Dr.  Chaplin.  It  appears  also  from  Mejr  ed  Din, 
that  the  neighbourhood  immediately  east  was  called  es 
Sahira,  and  was  an  ill-omened  place  connected  in  the 
imagination  of  Moslems  with  death  and  judgment  (like  the 
Kedron  Valley  beyond  it).     Possibly  in  this  we  may  have 


THE. MONUMENTS  OF  THE  COUNTRY. 


187 


some  trace   of  the  ill-omened  site  of  the  ancient  place  of 
execution. 

Another  point  concerning  this  hillock  has  been  noticed 
by  recent  visitors,  who  have  seen  in  its  outline  a  resem- 
blance to  a  skull.  This  was  mentioned  to  me  by  the  Rev. 
A.  Henderson,  but  I  could  not  then  remember  the  circum- 
stance. On  walking  from  the  north-east  corner  of  Jerusalem 
towards  the  rock  I  perceived,  however,  what  was  meant. 
The  rounded  summit  and  the  two  hollow  cave  entrances 
beneath  do,  indeed,  give  some  resemblance  to  a  skull,  as 
may  be  seen  in  a  photograph  taken  from  this  point  of  view 
by  Lieutenant  Mantell,  which  I  enclose.     It  is  the  skull  of 


Nuwly  dibcoviired  Tonil),  200  yards  west  of  Jcicmiah's  (JroUo. — 
View  from  East. 


»88  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'  WORK. 

an  animal  rather  than  of  a  human  being,  and  I  should  not 
like  to  base  an  argument  on  so  slight  a  resemblance.  It  is, 
however,  of  interest  to  note  the  fact,  as  many  persons 
consider  that  Golgotha  was  a  name  derived  from  the  form 
of  the  ground,  rather  than  from  the  use  of  the  site  as  a 
place  of  burial  or  of  execution. 

It  is  more  important  to  notice  that  the  site  of  Jeremiah's 
Grotto  is  peculiarly  fitted  for  a  place  of  execution  in  con- 
sequence of  its  commanding  position.  From  the  summit 
the  eye  roams  above  the  city  walls  over  the  greater  part  of 
Jerusalem,  while  on  the  west  the  ground  rises  beyond  the 
intervening  valley  like  a  theatre.  There  is  hardly  another 
spot  near  Jerusalem  so  fitted  to  be  the  central  point  for 
any  public  spectacle. 

Still  more  interesting  is  a  discovery  which  I  made  about 
a  week  ago  of  an  indisputably  Jewish  tomb  immediately 
west  of  the  knoll  in  question.  It  has  only  recently  been 
opened,  and  has  not  been  as  yet  described,  I  believe,  by 
any  visitor.  It  is  cut  in  the  east  face  of  a  very  curious 
rock  platform  measuring  about  70  paces  either  way — as 
shown  on  the  Ordnance  Survey  about  200  yards  west  of  the 
grotto.  The  platform  is  roughly  scarped  on  all  sides,  in  an 
apparently  artificial  manner,  and  on  the  west  is  a  higher 
piece  of  rock,  also  with  sides  rudely  scarped.  The  rest  of 
the  space  is  fairly  level,  but  there  seem  to  be  traces  of  the 
foundations  of  a  surrounding  wall  in  some  low  mounds  near 
the  edge  of  the  platform.  I  have  long  been  aware  of  the 
existence  of  a  curious  cistern  in  the  north-east  corner  of  this 
scarp.  It  has  a  domed  roof  with  a  man-hole,  and  also  a 
door  with  a  passage  10  ft.  long  and  3  ft.  wide,  leading  out 
eastwards.  The  cistern  is  about  8  paces  in  diameter,  and 
three  steps  lead  down  from  the  door  to  the  level  of  the 
cistern  floor.  The  excavation  seems  originally  to  have  been 
a  chamber  afterwards  converted  into  a  cistern,  and  there  are 


THE  MONUMENTS  OF  THE  COUNTRY. 


189 


sockets  for  the  door  hinges  and  for   bolts  in  the   passage 
entrance. 

The  ancient  tomb  is  some  thirty  paces  further  south,  and 
the  entrance  is  also  from  the  east.     The  whole  is  very  rudely 


SECTION  ON  C.  D 


I 


iScwly  (libcuvered  JewiMi  Ti  iiih  near  the  oily,  200  ) arils  wcsl  of 
Jercn.iah's  Grotto. 


190  TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'   WORK. 

cut  in  rock,  which  is  of  inferior  quahty.  The  doorway  is 
much  broken,  and  there  is  a  loophole  or  window  4  ft.  wide 
either  side  of  the  door.  The  outer  court,  cut  in  the  rock, 
is  7  ft.  square,  and  two  stones  are  so  placed  in  this  as  to 
give  the  idea  th:it  they  may  have  held  in  place  a  rolling 
stone  l)efore  the  door.  On  the  right  (or  north)  is  a  side 
entrance,  leading  into  a  chamber  with  a  single  loculus,  and 
thence  into  a  cave,  some  8  paces  square  and  10  ft.  high, 
with  a  well-nioulh  in  the  roof. 

The  chamber  within  the  tomb  entrance  is  reached  by  a 
descent  of  two  steps,  and  measures  6  ft.  by  9  ft.  From 
either  side  wall  and  from  the  back  wall  is  an  entrance  20 
in  wide  and  about  5^  ft.  high,  leading  into  a  side  chamber. 
A  passage  runs  in  continuation  of  each  entrance  for  4-^  ft., 
and  on  each  side  is  a  bench  about  2^  ft.  wide  and  2^  ft. 
high.  A  similar  bench  occurs  at  the  end,  the  whole  width 
of  each  chamber  being  thus  5^^  ft.,  its  length  7  ft.  2  in.,  and 
its  height  from  5  to  6  ft.  Each  would  contain  two  bodies 
lying  beside  the  passage,  but  there  would  scarcely  be  room 
for  three.  In  addition  to  these  three  chambers,  there  are 
two  excavations  on  the  floor-level,  in  the  further  corner  of 
the  central  chamber.  They  are  about  5  ft.  scjuare,  with 
narrow  entrances,  and  were  scattered  with  human  bones  at 
the  time  of  my  visit. 

The  discovery  of  this  tomb  is  of  no  little  importance  in 
connection  with  Jerusalem  topography.  If  it  be  compared 
with  the  great  cemetery  at  Sheik  Ibreik,  and  with  the 
monument  of  Helena  at  Jerusalem,  it  will  be  seen  to  belong 
to  the  later  Jewish  period — the  centuries  immediately  pre- 
ceding the  Christian  era.  It  is  not  a  Christian  tomb,  so 
far  as  can  be  judged,  for  ihe  Christians  in  Palestine  seem 
mainly  to  have  used  the  "  rock-sunk  "  tomb.  A  cemetery  of 
tombs  of  the  form  commonly  used  by  the  Crusaders  was 
found  in  1873  near  the  north-east  angle  of  the  Jerusalem 


THE  MONUMENTS  OF  THE  COUNTRY.  191 

eity  walls,  bat  no  Jewish  tomb  has  ever  been  found  before 
so  close  to  the  ramparts  of  the  modern  city  on  the  north  : 
the  next  nearest  being  the  tomb  discovered  in  1873,  about 
300  yards  further  north. 

It  would  be  bold  to  hazard  the  suggestion  that  the  single 
Jewish  sepulchre  thus  found  is  indeed  the  tomb  in  the 
garden  nigh  unto  the  place  called  Golgotha,  which  belonged 
to  the  rich  Joseph  of  Arimathea  ;  yet  its  appearance  so  near 
the  old  place  of  execution,  and  so  far  from  the  other  tombs 
in  the  other  cemeteries  of  the  city,  is  extremely  remarkable. 
I  am  sorry  to  say  that  a  group  of  Jewish  houses  is  growing 
up  round  the  spot.  The  rock  is  being  blasted  for  building- 
stone,  and  the  tomb,  unless  preserved,  may  perhaps  soon 
be  entirely  destroyed.  It  is  now  in  a  disgusting  condition 
of  filth,  which  shov.'s  that  the  Jews  have  little  reverence  for 
the  old  sepulchres  of  their  ancestors.  Perhaps  some  of  our 
readers  might  feel  willing  to  redeem  this  most  interesting 
monument  from  its  present  state  of  desecration,  and  to 
purchase  and  enclose  the  little  plot  of  rocky  ground  in  which 
it  stands.  Without  such  preservatit)n  the  sepulchre  is  doomed 
to  destruction  sooner  or  later. 

The  platform  of  rock  in  which  the  tomb  is  cut  seems 
possibly  to  have  been  the  base  of  a  group  of  towers  with  a 
scarped  foundation. 

The  distance  from  the  monument  of  Helena,  and  the 
p-jsition  with  respect  to  the  Cotton  Grotto,  agrees  with  the 
description  given  by  Josephus  of  the  position  of  the 
"Women's  Towers  "  {see  "  Handbook  to  the  Bible,"  p.  342). 
If  the  third  w'all  actually  extended  over  this  Hue,  it  is 
easy  to  explain  why  no  other  tombs  of  the  same  period 
exist  so  close  to  the  present  city.  The  extension  of  the 
fortifications  rendered  it  necessary  to  remove  the  cemetery 
further  off,  since  the  Jews  did  not  allow  sepulture  within  the 
walls.     The  cisterns  may  have  belonged  to  the  period  when 


192  TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'  WORK. 

the  great  towers  were  here  erected,  and  the  passage  with 
steps  may  even  have  been  a  postern  from  the  towers. 

If  we  could  feel  any  reasonable  certitude  that  in  this 
single  Jewish  tomb  (dating  about  the  time  of  Christ)  we 
have  recovered  the  actual  sepulchre  in  which  He  lay,  an 
easy  explanation  of  the  loss  of  the  site  is  afforded  at  once  ; 
for  the  construction,  some  ten  years  later,  of  the  "  Women's 
Towers  "  by  Agrippa,  uj)on  the  rock  over  the  tomb,  would 
have  caused  the  monument  to  be  hidden  beneath,  or  within 
the  new  buildings  ;  and  thus  the  sepulchre  could  no  longer 
be  visited,  and  in  course  of  time  its  existence  was  forgotten 
until  the  zealous  Helena  destroyed  the  Venus  Temple  on 
the  present  site  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre  Church,  and 
"  beyond  all  hope  "  (as  Eusebius  words  it)  discovered  the 
rock-cut  Jewish  tomb,  which  the  faithful  accepted  as  the 
tomb  of  Christ. 

f 

XIV.  Jacob's  Well. 

This  well  was  examined  by  the  late  Major 
Anderson,  who  was  lowered  to  the  bottom  in  the  year 
1866.     He  thus  described  it : — 

Jacob's  Well  is  situated  at  the  spot  where  the  Vale  of 
Shechem  merges  into  the  Plain  of  El  Mukna,  and  the  site 
is  acknowledged  by  Jews,  Moslems,  and  Christians.  The 
existence  of  a  well  sunk  to  a  great  depth  in  a  place  where 
watersprings  on  the  surface  are  abundant  is  sufficiently 
remarkable  to  give  this  well  a  peculiar  history.  It  is 
remarkably  characteristic  of  the  prudence  and  forethought 
of  the  great  Patriarch,  who,  having  purchased  a  parcel  of 
ground  at  the  entrance  of  the  vale,  secured  on  his  own 
property,  by  dint  of  great  toil,  a  perennial  supply  of  water 
at  a  time  when  the  adjacent  watersprings  were  in  the  hands 
of  unfriendly,  if  not  actually  hostile  neighbours. 


THE' MONUMENTS  OE  THE  COUNTRY.  193 

In  the  midst  of  a  mass  of  ruined  stones,  among  which 
are  two  or  three  columns  still  standing,  is  a  vaulted  chamber 
about  15  ft.  square,  and  in  the  floor  of  the  chamber  are 
two  openings  4  ft.  apart,  one  of  which  is  the  proper  mouth 
of  the  well.  The  other  opening  is  either  an  accidental 
breach,  or  has  been  designedly  made  in  a  rough  and 
ready  way  for  the  convenience  of  having  two  mouths,  by 
which  pitchers  could  be  lowered  into  the  well  simulta- 
neously. The  true  mouth  of  the  well  has  a  narrow  opening 
just  wide  enough  to  allow  the  body  of  a  man  to  pass 
through  with  arms  uplifted,  and  this  narrow  neck,  which  is 
about  4  ft.  long,  opens  out  into  the  well  itself,  which  is 
cylindrically  shaped  and  about  7  ft.  6  in.  in  diameter. 
The  mouth  and  upper  part  of  the  well  is  built  of  masonry, 
and  the  well  appears  to  have  been  sunk  through  a  mixture 
of  alluvial  soil  and  limestone  fragments  till  a  compact 
bed  of  mountain  limestone  was  reached,  having  horizontal 
strata  which  could  be  easily  worked,  and  the  interior  of 
the  well  presents  the  appearance  of  being  lined  throughout 
witli  rough  masonry. 

The  well,  when  examined  in  1866,  was  only  75  ft. 
deep,  but  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  original  depth 
was  much  greater,  as  quantities  of  rubbish  have  fallen 
mto  the  well  from  the  ruins  of  the  buildings  that  formerly 
covered  it,  and  passers-by  for  many  centuries  have  probably 
thrown  stones  into  it.  Robinson  states  that  the  well  in 
1838  was  105  ft.  deep,  and  if  his  measurement  is  correct, 
debris  to  a  depth  of  30  ft.  has  accumulated  in  thirty- 
eight  years.  In  1875  the  depth  was  found  by  Lieutenant 
Conder  to  be  75  ft.,  the  same  as  in  1866.  The  well 
was  undoubtedly  sunk  to  a  great  depth  for  the  purpose 
of  securing,  even  in  exceptionally  dry  seasons,  a  supply  of 
water,  which  at  great  depths  would  always  be  filtering 
through  the  sides    of  the  well   and  would   collect  at  the 

N 


194  TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'   WORK. 

bottom.  When  examined  in  April,  1866,  the  well  was  dry, 
but  an  earthenware  pitcher  was  found  at  the  bottom  of  the 
well  and  not  broken,  which  would  indicate  that  water  still 
collects  in  the  well  at  some  seasons,  as  the  pitcher  would 
have  been  broken  had  it  fallen  upon  the  stones. 

The  vaulted  chamber  over  the  well  might  possibly  be 
the  crypt  of  the  church  f)uilt  over  tlie  well  about  the  fourth 
century.*  Arculphus,  one  of  the  early  travellers  in  Pales- 
tine, describes  the  church  in  the  form  of  a  cross  and  the 
well  in  the  middle ;  but  by  the  time  of  the  Crusaders  the 
church  was  destroyed,  and  subsequent  travellers  who 
visited  the  well  mention  only  the  ruins  around  it. 

It  would  be  a  matter  of  the  greatest  interest  if  the 
Committee  were  enabled,  through  the  liberality  of  Dr. 
Rogers  and  Miss  Peache,  not  only  to  clear  out  the  well, 
but  to  excavate  and  disclose  to  view  the  foundations  of  one 
of  the  earliest  cruciform  churches.  It  would  then  be  for 
consideration  how  to  give  effect  to  the  proposal  to  surround 
and  protect  the  well  with  stonework. 

The  accompanying  woodcut  illustrates  the  state  of  the 
vault  as  it  appeared  nine  years  ago,  but  since  then  many  of 
the  stones  composing  it,  and  probably  all  the  well-cut  stones 
in  the  adjacent  ruins,  have  been  removed  to  supply  materials 
for  the  new  Turkisli  barrack,  situated  half  a  mile  distant  in 
the  direction  of  Nablus. 

The  following  is  the  most  recent  account  of  it  : — 

Very  probably  some  short  account  of  a  recent  visit  that  I 
paid  to  Nablous  may  be  of  some  interest  to  the  many 
readers  of  the   Quarterly  Statement.     The  state  of  Jacob's 

*  In  the  Quarterly  Statctncnt,  Jan.  1874,  p.  6,  reference  is  made  to 
the  church  at  Abu  Ghosh,  named  after  St.  Jerome,  where  excavations 
have  disclosed  a  crj'pt,  forming  a  complete  subterranean  church,  which 
contains  a  cave  or  cistein  filled  with  water. 


{To /cut  p.  195. 


R  UINED      VAULT       0  VEli 
JACOB'S       WELL. 


ui 

^ 

tn 
'm 
o 
o 
< 

ll. 
o 

z 
o 

l- 
u 

u 


Limestone:-j^^ 
Bock  a/j^2p- 


^  (Mason  ry 


^    J)epfhofWell      JSftr. 

me 

ft   DictmeCer  ^.  6in . 


a.  a„  Upeninys 
jn  to  We  71 


Fic/.2. 


sy 


I  Plan  nf  CIturcJt 

-        built  oi'erjacoii  JVrJl 
r '//      cleac  rilecl  iujlrculjilius 


%   ,m)^&o 


r,l,vt><;"- 


THE  MONUMEXTS  OF  THE  COUNTRY.  195 

Well  is  doubtless  well  known  to  the  majority  of  your 
subscribers,  even  to  those  who  have  not  themselves  visited 
the  Holy  Land.  It  has  again  and  again  been  described  by 
the  many  writers  on  Palestine,  and  all  have  mentioned  their 
uisappointment  that  instead  of  finding  any  semblance  to  a 
well,  or  anything  which  could  recall  the  interview  of  our 
Lord  with  the  woman  of  Samaria,  they  have  merely  found 
a  dark  irregular  hole  amid  a  mass  of  ruins  in  a  vaulted 
chamber  beneath  the  surface  of  the  ground.  I  have  shared 
this  disappointment  on  many  previous  visits  to  Nablous, 
and  again,  as  a  fortnight  ago  I  stood  with  my  wife  beside 
the  spot,  it  was  with  great  regret  that  we  were  so  utterly 
unable  to  picture  before  us  the  scene  so  graphically 
described  by  the  Evangelist.  We  had  clambered  down  into 
the  vault,  and  were  vainly  attempting  to  pee'-  into  the  dark 
hole  amid  the  heaps  of  stones  and  rubbish,  when  we 
chanced  to  notice,  a  few  feet  from  the  opening,  a  dark 
crack  between  the  stones.  Fancying  that  possibly  it 
might  be  another  opening  of  the  well,  we  removed  some 
stones  and  earth,  and  soon  were  able  to  trace  part  of  a 
carved  aperture  in  a  large  slab  of  stone.  Deeply  interested 
at  fmding  thi<;,  we  cleared  away  more  earth  and  stones,  and 
soon  distinguished  the  circular  mouth  of  the  well,  though  it 
was  blocked  by  an  immense  mass  of  stone.  Calling  to  aid 
two  men  who  were  looking  on,  with  considerable  labour 
we  at  length  managed  to  remove  it,  and  the  opening  of  the 
well  was  clear.  It  is  impossible  to  describe  our  feelings  as 
we  gazed  down  the  open  well,  and  sat  on  that  ledge  on 
which  doubtless  the  Saviour  rested,  and  felt  with  our  fingers 
the  grooves  in  the  stone  caused  by  the  roi)es  by  which  the 
water-pots  were  drawn  up.  The  following  day  we  devoted 
to  comi)letely  excavating  round  the  opening  of  the  well,  and 
laying  bare  the  massive  stone  which  forms  its  mouth.  This 
consists  of  the  hard  white  limestone  of  the  country,  and  is 

N    2 


196 


TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'  WORK. 


in  fair  preservation,  thougli  parts  are  broken  away  here  and 
there.     The  annexed  rude  sketch  gives  some  idea  of  its 


appearance. 


The  exact  measurements  I  also  give  : — 

Length 

Breadth       

Thickness   ... 

Height  above  the  pavement 

Breadth  of  aperture  of  the  well 

Depth  of  the  well   ... 

Width  


We  let  a  boy  down  to  the  bottom,  but  found  nothing  of 
any  interest,  but  evidently  there  is  a  large  accumulation  of 
rubbish,     I  trust  that  a  stone  of  such  intense  interest  may 


ft. 

m. 

3 

9 

2 

7 

6 

I 

5i 

67 

0 

6 

THE: MONUMENTS  OF  THE  COUNTRY.  197 

long  remain  uninjured  now  that  it  has  been  exposed  to  light. 
—  I  am,  yours  faithfully,  Charles  Wright  Barclay. 

The  Rev.  John  Mill  in  his  "  Three  Months'  Residence 
at  Nablus,"  published  in  1864,  at  p.  4.5,  states  in  reference 
to  Jacob's  Well,  that  "in  1855,  when  we  first  visited  this 
place,  we  measured  it  as  carefully  as  we  could,  and  found  it 
to  be  9  ft.  in  diameter,  and  a  little  more  than  70  ft.  deep. 
But  older  travellers  found  it  much  deeper.  .  .  .  On 
my  second  visit  in  i860,  the  mouth  of  the  well  was 
completely  filled  U|>,  so  that  it  was  v^•ith  difficulty  I  could 
identify  the  spot  where  it  was.  Nor  could  I  learn  how  this 
had  occurred.  Some  of  my  friends  at  Nablus  thought  that 
the  torrents  during  the  rains  of  the  pievious  winter  were  the 
cause  ;  but  others  believed  that  it  was  done  by  the  inhabitants 
of  the  little  village  close  by,  on  account  of  the  well  being 
bought  by  the  Greek  Church.  The  well,  however,  was 
completely  hid  from  sight,  to  the  great  disappointment  of 
many  travellers  beside  myself. 

"On  further  inquiry  I  learnt  from  the  Greek  priest  tha 
their  Church  had  actually  bought  the  well  from  the  Turkish 
Government,  including  a  plot  of  ground  surrounding  it,  of 
229  ft.  by  180  ft.  For  this  they  had  paid,  he  told  me, 
70,000  piastres;  but  another  friend,  belonging  to  the  same 
community,  told  me  it  was  at  least  100,000." 

Mr.  Mill  also  mentions  that  the  Christians  call  it  Beer 
Saniariyek,  the  "  Samaritan  Well,"  while  the  Samaritan ; 
themselves  call  it  Beer  Jacub,  or  "  Jacob's  Well."  He  also 
points  out  that  it  is  not  an  Ai?i  (b^),  a  well  of  living  water, 
but  a  ber  ("^^3.)'  ^  cistern  to  hold  rain  water. 

XV.  The  vase  of  the  Temple. 

This  little  vase  which  Warren  found  inserted  in  a 
receptacle  on  the  rock  close  to  the  lowest  stone  of  the 


198 


TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'   WORK. 


Temple — S.E.  corner— must  not  be  forgotten.     The 
late  Dr.  Birch  wrote  of  it : — 

The  little  vase  which  you  left  accompanies  the  present 
letter.  It  is  of  rather  rude  shape  and  coarse  terra-cotta,  and 
closely  resembles  some  in  the  British  Museum,  said  to  have 
been  found  in  Rachel's  tomb  at  Bethlehem.     As  there  was 


also  found  at  the  same  site  a  shell  engraved  with  figures, 
and  partly  carved,  which  might  be  as  old  as  the  fourth  or 
fifth  century  B.C.,  it  is  just  possible  that  the  vase,  which 
resembles  Egyptian  ware  in  shape,  might  be  as  old  as  that 
period,  but  there  are  no  data  to  my  knowledge  from 
inscriptions  on  this  class  of  pottery  to  determine  its  actual 
age. 

There  are  many  other  monuments  in  Palestine,  for 
which  the  reader  is  referred  to  the  memoirs  of  the 
survey.  Among  them  arc  the  synagogues  of  Galilee 
{see  volume  called  Special  Papers,  "  The  Synagogues 


THE  MONUMENTS  OF  THE  COUNTRY.  199 

of  Galilee,"  by  Sir  Charles  Wilson)  ;  the  Crusading 
castles  {see  the  memoirs,  each  under  its  name) ;  the 
Crusaders'  churches,  the  tombs,  the  great  ruined 
towns  and  fortresses,  such  as  Caesarea,  Athlit,  Masada, 
Arak-el  Emir,  Amman,  Petra,  Tyre,  &c.,  the  Samaritan 
Temple  and  its  documents,  the  Phoenician  remains  in 
the  north,  the  aqueducts,  ancient  roads,  &c.,  all  of 
which  may  be  found  fully  described  in  the  memoirs. 

We  have  thus  briefly  run  through  the  principal 
gains  to  our  knowledge  of  the  country,  acquired  by  the 
Society  during  the  last  twenty  years.  It  will  be 
acknowledged  that  we  have  been  enabled  to  pour  a 
flood  of  light  upon  almost  every  head  of  enquiry 
possible  to  the  Biblical  student.  We  shall  presently 
consider  the  subject  of  what  remains  to  be  done. 

Among  other  things  that  the  Society  has  accom- 
plished is  the  awakening  of  a  general  interest  over 
the  whole  of  Christendom  in  the  subject.  There 
have  been  founded  within  the  last  twelve  years,  an 
American,  a  German,  and  a  Russian  society  for  the 
exploration  of  Palestine.  The  two  latter  are  in 
vigorous  life,  each  with  its  Journal  like  ourselves. 
The  first  is  unfortunately  defunct.  But  one  of  its 
explorers,  Dr.  Selah  Merrill,  is  still  in  Jerusalem  as 
American  Consul,  and  doing  good  work  for  the  cause. 

The  foundation  of  the  Palestine  Pilgrim's  Text 
Society  is  another  indication  of  interest  in  the  whole 
subject.     This  little  society  has  already  issued  three 


200  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'   WORK. 

texts,  one  of  w  hich,  the  Translation  of  Procopius,  on 
the  buildint^s  of  Justinian,  is,  with  its  admirable 
dra\vin<^s  and  \-aluable  notes,  a  production  worthy  of 
the  greatest  admiration.  It  has  three  others  in  type 
waiting  to  be  annotated. 

The  foundation  of  the  Societe  de  TOrient  Latin, 
directed  by  M.  le  Comtc  Riant,  cannot  be  attributed 
to  English  influence,  but  it  is  an  institution  which, 
like  the  Pilgrims'  Text  Society,  promises  to  render 
the  highest  services  to  the  Palestine  student. 


20I 


CHAPTER   XII. 

OBITUARY. 

In  the  space  of  twenty-one  years  the  Society  has 
naturally  had  to  lament  the  loss  by  death  of  many 
supporters  and  friends.  Among  those  who  have 
actually  worked  for  the  Society  in  the  field  we  have 
lost  four.  Mr.  Charles  F.  Tyrwhitt  Drake,  the  first  of 
these,  who  died  exhausted  by  fever  and  asthma  in 
June,  1874,  at  the  early  age  of  28,  at  the  time 
when  his  knowledge  of  the  country  and  the 
people,  with  a  daily  increasing  grasp  of  the  pro- 
blems awaiting  solution,  made  him  of  the  greatest 
service  to  the  Society's  work.  The  second.  Major 
Anderson,  R.E.,  who  was  with  Wilson  on  the  Pre- 
liminary Expedition  of  1865,  died  in  the  autumn  of 
1880,  at  the  comparatively  early  age  of  42.  The 
third  is  the  late  Rev.  F.  W.  Holland,  Vicar  of 
Evesham,  who  had  made  the  Sinai  Peninsula  his  own 
field  of  study.  It  was  he  who  carried  out  the  project 
of  surveying  the  Peninsula,  which  was  executed  by 
Sir  Charles  Wilson  in  the  year  1869.  He  visited  the 
country  six  times.  Up  to  the  date  of  his  death, 
which  was  in  the  year  1879,  he  acted  with  Sir  George 
Grove  as  an  hon.  secretary  of  the  Society.     The  last, 


202  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'   WORK. 

Prof.  Edward  Henry  Palmer,  was  taken  from  the 
world  by  the  tragic  fate  which  is  still  in  everybody's 
memory.  His  loss  is  one  which  can  never  be 
replaced. 

Among  the  members  of  the  Committee  who  have 
left  us  may  be  mentioned,  first,  those  who  were 
distinguished  as  travellers  in  Palestine,  and  writers  on 
the  Holy  Land.  These  are  Dean  Stanley,  always 
the  most  sincere  friend  and  supporter  of  the 
Society,  to  which  he  bequeathed  a  small  collection 
of  books  ;  the  Rev.  George  Williams,  author  of  "The 
Holy  City  ";  and  Mr.  James  Fergusson,  the  author  of 
the  Theory  on  the  Sacred  Sites,  which  caused  so  keen 
a  controversy. 

His  first  book  on  the  subject  appeared  in  the  year 
1847,  and  he  never  swerved,  save  in  some  small 
details,  from  the  opinion  there  laid  down,  that  the 
Dome  of  the  Rock  is  nothing  else  than  the  Basilica  of 
Constantine,  erected  over  the  Holy  Sepulchre.  He 
based  this  opinion  upon  the  drawings  of  the  building 
made  by  Catherwood.  It  involved  two  other  theories, 
namcl\%  that  the  Temple  must  necessarily  have  stood 
in  the  south-west  corner  of  the  Haram  Area,  and  that 
the  present  so-called  Church  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre 
could  be  nothing  but  a  church  built  over  a  site 
fraudulently  asserted  to  be  that  of  the  Sepulchre  by 
the  monks.  Nothing  that  was  afterwards  discovered 
in  the  city  by  Wilson,  Warren,  Conder,  and  others, 


OBITUARY.  203 


ever  shook  him  in  this  opinion,  nor  did  any  of  the 
numerous  books  and  arguments,  advanced  by  his 
opponents,  ever  convince  him  that  he  was  wrong. 
He  died  in  January  of  the  present  year,  and  it  now 
remains  to  be  seen  whether  any  one  will  be  found  to 
maintain  the  theory  which  he  advanced  and  defended 
so  obstinately  and  with  so  much  success  that  it  has 
been  suffered  to  remain  unquestioned  for  twenty-one 
years  in  Smith's  Dictionary  of  the  Bible.  We  had 
also,  at  the  end  of  the  year  1879,  to  regret  the  sudden 
death  of  Mr.  Hepworth  Dixon,  for  some  time  the 
Chairman  of  the  Executive  Committee. 

As  to  those  former  members  of  the  Committee 
who  were  in  their  lifetime  the  supporters  of  the 
Society,  to  enumerate  them  is  almost  to  read  a  roll 
of  English  worthies  of  the  Victorian  age.  For  in- 
stance, among  the  long  list  are  the  honoured  names  of 
Archbishop  Tait,  Bishop  Wilberforce,  Bishop  Jackson, 
Emmanuel  Deutsch,  Prof  Donaldson,  Lord  Derby, 
Dean  Howson,  Lord  Dunraven,  Dr.  Keith  Johnstone, 
Sir  Antonio  Panizzi,  Lord  Lawrence,  Sir  Moses 
Montefiore,  Lord  Ossington,  Dr.  Norman  McLeod, 
Dr.  Pusey,  Earl  Russell,  Sir  Gilbert  Scott,  Mr.  W. 
Spottiswoode,  Lord  Stratford  de  Redcliffe,  Lord 
Shaftesbury,  Lord  Strangford,  Sir  William  Tito,  Lord 
Zetland,  and  Mr.  W.  S.  W.  Vaux. 


204 


CHAPTER   XIIT. 


TIIK    WORK    OF    THE    FUTURE 


quiry  into  the  manners  and  customs  of  the  people  ;  or 
(3)  we  may  pubHsh  the  MSS.,  maps,  and  plans  in  our 
hands. 

(i)  Survey  work. 


THE  WORK  OF  THE  FUTURE.  ^05 

We  have  already  accomplished  the  survey  of 
Western  Palestine.  But  nearly  the  whole  of  the  East, 
together  with  the  North  and  South,  awaits  the  surveyor. 
The  duty  of  the  Committee  is  clearly  marked  out  by 
their  original  prospectus,  as  regards  survey  work,  viz., 
to  continue  it  until  not  an  acre  is  left  which  has  not 
been  surveyed  and  laid  down  and  not  a  ruin  which 
has  not  been  examined. 

(2)  Excavations. 

The  only  excavations  made  by  the  Society  are 
those  at  Jerusalem.  There  are,  however,  very  many 
other  sites  which  would  well  repay  excavation,  and 
it  is  intended  to  take  up  this  branch  of  the  work 
seriously  as  soon  as  funds  allow  and  opportunity 
occurs.  There  is,  however,  one  special  piece  of  work 
which  is  at  the  present  moment  most  urgent,  and  lies 
open  to  us  and  ready  to  our  hands.  It  is  this.  By 
the  accident  of  recent  building  operations  in  Jerusalem, 
a  portion  of  a  wall  was  laid  bare  (it  is  now  covered  up 
again)  which  seems  likely  to  be  no  other  than  the 
ancient  Second  Wall.  The  portion  uncovered  was 
120  ft.  long,  10  ft.  broad,  with  a  rock  scarp  outside  it 
at  least  15  ft.  deep.  Its  masonry  is  exactl}'  similar 
to  that  in  "David's  To\\er "  with  the  well-known 
marginal  draft,  such  as  is  found  on  the  lowest  courses 
and  the  more  ancient  portions  of  the  Temple  wall. 

It  is  on  every  account  desirable  that  this  discovery 
should  be  at  once  followed  up.     The   course  of  the 


2o6  TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'   WORK. 

second  wall  involves,  among  many  other  important 
things,  nothing  less  than  the  authenticity  of  the  Holy 
Places.  For  if  it  should  prove  to  run  in  such  a 
manner  as  to  include  within  itself  the  Church  of  the 
Holy  Sepulchre,  in  that  case  the  whole  of  the 
traditional  sites,  the  so-called  sepulchre  itself,  with 
all  the  sacred  associations,  traditions,  and  legends 
gathered  round  it  will  fall  to  pieces  at  once  by  the 
mere  force  of  that  one  fact.  They  could  no  longer 
be  defended  even  by  the  stoutest  upholder  of  tradition, 
because  one  thing  is  perfectly  certain  and  cannot  be 
denied,  viz.  :  that  the  tomb  of  Our  Lord  was  without 
the  city  wall.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  the  present  and 
traditional  site  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre  is  proved  to 
have  been  zvitJiout  the  Second  Wall,  then  the  partisans 
of  tradition  will  be  enormously  strengthened,  and, 
though  the  battle  between  the  present  site  as  advo- 
cated by  George  Williams  and  his  following,  those  who 
advocate  the  site  proposed  by  Fergusson,  and  those 
who  incline  to  that  proposed  by  Captain  Conder  may 
still  be  carried  on,  the  advantage  of  early  tradition, 
not  disproved  by  excavation,  will  still  remain  with  the 

first. 

It  is  proper  to  state  that,  in  the  opinion  of  Herr 

Conrad  Schick,  who  has  long  resided  in  the  city  and 

studied  its  problems,  the  Second  Wall  will  be  found  to 

follow  a  course  (which  he  has  indicated)  which  will 

not  include  the  Church  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre.     The 


THE  WORK  OF  THE  FUTURE.  207 


tombs  which  now  exist  under  the  present  buildings 
will  then  be  proved  to  have  formed  part  of  a  Jewish 
cemetery  without  the  wall,  and  yet  close  to  it. 

(3)  The  manners  and  customs  of  the  people. 

Something  has  been  already  done  in  this  direction. 
Observations  have  been  made  by  Mrs.  Finn,  Aliss 
Rogers,  M.  Clermont  Ganneau,  Mr.  Klein,  and,  so  far  as 
opportunity  occurred,  by  our  own  officers.  But  these 
observations  have  hitherto  been  made  without  method 
and  on  no  scientific  principle.  The  time  has  now  come, 
and  the  opportunity,  when  an  inquiry  can  be  under- 
taken into  the  whole  field  of  what  we  call  manners 
and  customs,  and  this,  not  in  Palestine  only,  but  over 
the  whole  of  Syria  and  the  adjacent  countries.  The 
Committee  have  placed  themselves  in  communication 
with  the  Anthropological  Society,  the  Folklore 
Society,  and  other  learned  bodies,  and  with  their 
assistance,  and  the  help  of  Captain  Conder,  to  whom 
belongs  the  principal  credit  of  the  work,  they  have 
prepared  a  set  of  questions  covering  the  religion, 
tradition,  folklore,  arts,  customs,  proverbs,  &c.,  of  the 
various  people  inhabiting  the  country.  These  ques- 
tions are  arranged  according  to  the  people  for  whom 
they  are  intended.  The  subscribers  of  the  Society 
were  invited  at  the  outset  of  the  work,  which  has  not 
been  hurried,  to  send  in  questions  ;  many  complied 
with  this  invitation.  Captain  Conder  wishes  to  take 
this  opportunity  of  informing  those  whose  questions 


2oS  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'  WORK. 


have  been  given  to  him,  that  he  believes  they  will 
all  be  found,  though  perhaps  in  different  forms,  in  the 
questions  prepared  by  him.  Thus,  though  it  is  most 
important  that  the  (lucstions  should  serve  the 
purpose  of  Biblical  illustration,  it  is  necessary  that 
they  should  not  be  so  put  as  to  suggest  a  13iblical 
bearing  and  therefore  an  obvious  answer.  Tho.se 
questions  now  ready  will  be  placed  in  the  proper 
hands  immediately,  and  the  results  will  be  duly 
published. 

(4)  Publication  of  work  already  done. 
It  must  be  remembered  that  work  is  not  completed 
until  it  is  published.  There  is  a  general  tendency 
among  the  supporters  of  our  enterprise  to  discontinue 
or  to  suspend  their  support  at  those  times  when  there 
is  no  party  in  the  field.  Now,  first  of  all,  the  \\ork 
of  the  Society  in  the  Holy  Land  itself,  as  may  be 
seen  from  the  Quarterly  Statement,  is  never  stopped. 
Grants  are  always  required  for  some  piece  of  work  or 
other.  But,  secondly,  when  the  results  come  home 
they  have  to  be  published  or  they  are  useless. 

Now  there  is  at  present  in  the  hands  of  the  Com- 
mittee, a  whole  mass  of  work  which  loudly  calls  for 
publication.      It  consists  of — 

I.  Captain  Conder's  Survey  of  Eastern  Pales- 
tine. This  amounts  to  as  much  letterpress 
as  would  fill  a  volume  of  the  "  Survey  of 
Western  Palestine,"  w  ith  hundreds  of  draw- 


THE  WORK  OF  THE  FUTURE.  209 

ings  and  places.  The  cost  of  publication 
would  be  about  ^1,000. 

2.  M.   Lecomte's  drawings,  made  for  the   Com- 

mittee under  M.  Clermont  Ganneau's  super- 
vision. There  are  about  700  of  these,  mostly 
quite  small,  representing  architectural  details 
and  ruins.  They  are  drawn  with  extreme 
delicacy  and  beauty,  and  form  a  most 
remarkable  addition  to  the  archaeology  of 
the  country.  The  cost  of  publication  would 
be  about  ^1,200. 

3.  Mr.  Chichester  Hart's  "Memoir  on  the  Natural 

History  of  the  Wady  Arabah."  Tlie  illus- 
trations for  this  memoir  are  already  drawn. 
It  would  not  cost  more  than  about  /■200. 

4.  We  are  also  expecting  another  instalment  of 

work  from  Herr  G.  Schumacher,  in  addition 
to  that  already  published  under  the  title 
"  Across  the  Jordan." 

5.  The  answers  to  the  questions  about  to  be  sent 

to  the  Holy  Land  will  also  have  to  be  pub- 
lished when  they  have  been  arranged  and 
digested. 

The  Committee,  therefore,  think  that  they  may 
fairly  ask  their  friends  to  mark  the  twenty-first  anni- 
versary of  the  foundation  of  the  Society  by  raising 
the  sum  necessary  to  accomplish  the  above  objects, 

viz., — to  recapitulate: — ■ 

O 


2IO  TWENTY-ONE    YEARS'   WORK. 

1.  The    prosecution    of    the    discovery    of    the 

Second   Wall,   or    of    the    wall    which    may 
prove  to  be  the  Second  Wall. 

2.  The    promotion     of    the    inquiry     into     the 

manners  and  customs  of  the  various  people 
inhabiting  the  Bible  lands. 

3.  The  publication  of  the  various   MSS.  now  in 

the  hands  of  the  Committee. 
The  history  of  the  Society  has  now  been  briefly 
treated  from  the  beginning.  It  has  been  shown  that 
the  Committee  have  been  steadily  at  work  without 
intermission  for  twenty-one  years.  The  Biblical 
gains  have  been  so  great  that  the  whole  of  the 
topography  and  geography  of  the  country  have  been 
reconstructed  ;  as  regards  Jerusalem,  we  now  know 
and  understand  the  magnificence  on  which  Josephus 
dwells  with  what  was  previously  believed  to  be 
l)atriotric  exaggeration  ;  everything  which  has  been 
examined  shows  the  minute  accuracy,  so  far  as  places 
are  concerned,  of  the  historical  portions  of  the  Bible, 
as,  for  instance,  in  the  case  of  many  towns  men- 
tioned in  the  Book  of  Joshua,  sites  have  been  re- 
covered simply  by  observing  the  order  in  which  they 
are  placed.  Then,  including  those  finds  which  are 
not  the  property,  so  to  speak,  of  the  Society,  we  have 
in  the  Moabite  Stone  and  the  Siloam  inscription 
documents  contemporary  with  the  kings  of  Judah  and 
Israel,  and  written  in  the  same  character  (from  which 


THE   WORK  OF  THE  FUTURE.  211 


our  own  is  descended)  that  was  employed  by  the  writers 
of  the  Old  Testament  books  ;  in  the  stone  of  Herod's 
Temple  we  have  actually  one  of  those  boundary 
stones  which  stood  in  the  courts,  trodden  by  the  feet 
of  Our  Lord  ;  in  the  Gezer  inscriptions  we  have  the 
ancient  town  boundaries  ;  in  the  Head  of  Hadrian  we 
have  the  very  image  which,  placed  upon  the  site  of  the 
Holy  of  Holies,  finally  provoked  the  Jews  to  their  last 
and  most  desperate  revolt ;  in  the  cromlechs  and  stone 
circles  of  the  east,  and  in  the  high  places  of  the  west 
we  have  the  remains  of  the  old  sun  worship,  which 
the  Israelites  were  commanded  to  drive  out  of  the  land  ; 
we  can  for  the  first  time  follow  David  in  his  wanderings, 
and  the  campaigns  of  the  Jewish  warriors,  Judges  and 
Kings ;  we  know  the  birds,  the  beasts,  the  reptiles,  and 
the  fishes  of  the  land  ;  we  know  the  trees,  the  plants, 
and  the  flowers  ;  nay,  we  know  the  very  rocks,  the 
foundations  of  the  land.  More  than  this,  and  out- 
side the  Bible,  the  country  is  covered  with  remains 
of  Canaanite,  Israelite,  Phcenician,  Greek,  Roman, 
Christian,  Saracen,  Frank  and  Mohammedan.  Their 
cemeteries,  temples,  synagogues,  and  castles  are 
dotted  over  the  whole  country.  We  can  read  these 
monuments  so  as  to  discern  between  all  these  people. 
We  can  assign  to  the  Crusader  the  stones  which  he 
dressed  for  his  castle  ;  to  the  Jew,  his  synagogue;  to 
the    early    Christian,    his    hermitage ;    and    to    the 

Saracen,  his  khan ;  to   each   tomb  we  can    assign   a 

O  2 


212  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'   WORK. 


class  and  the  period  of  its  first  construction,  whether 
it  be  the  splendid  monument  known  as  Joshua's 
Tomb,  which  was  certainly  constructed  for  some 
prince  in  Israel,  or  the  tomb  in  the  garden  near  the 
Place  of  Stoning,  which  is  the  Hill  of  the  Skull, 
where,  as  Captain  Condcr  thinks,  is  the  "  new  Tomb," 
in  which  no  man  had  lain  until  there  was  brought 
thither  a  certain  dead  Body  from  a  cross,  and  a  great 
stone  was  rolled  across  the  door,  and  two  women  sat 
weeping  without. 


21- 


APPENDIX     I 


CHRONOLOGICAL  SUMMARY  OF  THE 
FUND'S   WORK. 

1865.  Foundation    of    the    Society,    June    22nd,     1865. 

Patron — The  Queen.  President — The  Archbishop 
of  York.  Hon.  Treas. — John  Abel  Smith  and 
Robert  CulHng  Hanbury.  Hon.  Sec— George 
Grove. 

Drawing  up  of  the  Original  Prospectus. 

Meetings  and  Letters  to  the  Papers. 

Organisation  of  First  Expedition. 

1866.  First    Expedition    of    Captain    Wilson,    R.E.,    and 

Lieutenant  Anderson,  R.E. 

Publications — Captain    Wilson's     Letters     and 
Report. 

1867.  Consideration   of  question  whether  the  survey  or 

the   excavations    at    Jerusalem    should    be    next 
carried  on. 
Despatch  of  Lieutenant  Warren  with  a  party  of  non- 
commissioned officers  of  Royal  Engineers  for  the 
excavations. 
1868.1  Excavations  at  Jerusalem. 
1869.  ?  Discovery  of  the  Moabite  stone. 
1870. -I  Discovery  (by  M.  Clermont  Ganneau)  of  the  Stone 
of  the  Temjile. 
Survey  of  Sinai. 
Return  of  Captain  Warren. 

Publications — Lieutenant  Warren's  Letters,    L- 
XXXIV. 


214  riVENTY-ONE  YEARS'   WORK. 

Comniencement    of    Quarterly  Statement., 
March,  1869. 
1871.     Palmer's  Journey  through  the  Desert  of  the  Tih. 

Restilts — Departure   of  the  survey  Expedition, 

October. 
Publications—  Pahner's  Report 

Warren  on  the  Plains  of  PhiHstia. 
Pahner's  Notes  on  Lebanon. 
Papers  by  Hyde  Clarke,  Clermont  Ganneau 
Palmer's  Hist,  of  the  Haram  Esh  Sherif. 
First  Paper  on  the  Hamath  Inscriptions. 
All  in  the  Quarterly  Statetnent. 

iHf2.  First  year  of  the  survey — Captain  Stewart  is  com- 
pelled by  ill-health  to  resign — Lieutenant  Conder 
takes  his  place — Despatch  of  an  American  Ex- 
]jedition  to  survey  Eastern  Palestine. 

Results — One  thousand  square  miles  surveyed; 
identification  of  Tell  Jezer  with  Gezer ; 
discovery  of  a  great  aqueduct  from  the 
souterrain  at  the  Convent  of  the  Sisters  of 
Zion  (now  considered  by  Sir  Charles 
Wilson  as  the  Pool  of  Bethcsda). 
Publications — Arabic  Names  and  Plans,  by 
Captain  Warren. 
East  of  Jordan,  Expedition  to,  by  Rev.  A. 

E.  Northey. 
Meteorology,  by  James  Glaisher,  F.R.S. 
Palestine  and  Cuneiform  Inscriptions,  by 

George  Smith. 
Temple   Middoth,  Tract  on  the  Measure- 
ments of. 

All  in  the  Quarterly  Statement. 
Our  Work  in  Palestine.     First  edition. 
1873.     Continuation  of  survey — 2,000  square  miles  accom- 


A'FFENDIX  /.  21 : 


plished — Special     surveys    of     Athlit,     Caesarea, 

Miamas,  Kuliinsavvieh,  Tantura,  El  Midieh,  Deir 

Asrur, 
Joshua's  tomb. 
Discovery  of  a  Samaritan  inscription  (Deuteronomy 

iv.  29-31)  at  Gaza. 
First  publication,  of  the  Rock  Levels  of  Jerusalem. 
The  "  Moabite  Pottery  "  forgery^ 
Report  on  the  Baalbek  Ruins,  by  Captain  Conder. 

Papers-  in  the  Quarterly  Statement — ■ 

"  Ebal  and  G-orizim,"  by  Captain  Wilson. 
The  Comparativ-e  Chronology  of  Palestine, 

Egypt,  and  Assyria,  by  F.  R.  Conder. 
Proposed     Restoration     of    the    Hamath 

Inscriptions.. 
Notes  on  Jerusalem  Discoveries,  by  C.  W. 

Wilson. 

1874.     Archaeological    Mission   of  M.  Clermont  Ganneau 
(Nov.  1873  to  Nov.  1874). 

Results — Discovery  of  early  Christian  sarco- 
phagi ;  the  Head  of  Hadrian  ;  identifica- 
tion of  Stone  of  Bohan  \  the  Cave  of 
Adullam  ;  opening  of  tombs  at  the  Khur- 
bet  Kurman  ;  collection  of  legends  ;  indi- 
cation of  distinctive  character  of  stones 
cut  by  the  Crusaders  \  excavating  a  sepul- 
chral cave  near  the  Mount  of  Olives  ;  dis- 
covery and  plan  of  an  ancient  cemetery 
N.E.  of  Jerusalem  ;  identification  of  ]^lount 
Scopus ;  discovery  of  the  Moabite  for- 
geries ;  excavations  in  the  Haram  ;  exami- 
nation of  the  Kubbet  es  Sakhra ;  excava- 
tion of  rock-cut  chambers  near  the  Ecce 
Homo  Arch  ;  identification  of  the  Forest 


2i6  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS'  WORK. 


of  Harith  ;  flint  implements  near  Jerusalem  ; 
Kurn  Surtabeh  and  its  associations ;  dis- 
covery of  the  "Boundary  of  Gezer";  dis- 
covery of  an  ancient  Arabic  inscription  in 
the  Haram  ;  the  "Vase  of  Bezetha,"  &c., 
together    with    plans,    sections,    drawings, 
&c.,  by  M.  Lecomtc  (still  unpublished). 
Continuation    of  the  Survey  (3,000   square   miles 
completed)  —  Examination   of    the    cave    called 
Mugharet  Umm  el  Tuweimeh,  plans  of  Fureidis, 
Kusr   el   Yahud,  Kusr  el    Hajlah,   Deir  el  Kelt, 
Kalaat  Hathrurah,  site  of  Gilgal,  aqueducts  in  the 
Plain  of  Jericho,  Suk   Wady  Barada,  El   Midieh 
(iModin),   Rh.  Ikbala,  Yerzeh,  Kaukab  el  Hawa, 
Beisan,    identification  of   Antipatris    and  TEnon, 
discovery  of  rude  stone  monuments,  &c. 
Death  of  Mr.  C.  F.  Tyrwhitt  Drake. 

Quarterly  Statement — Mr,    James   Glaisher  on 
Meteorolcg)'  of  Palestine.     Exposure  of 
the  Moabite  forgeries. 

1875.  Continuation  of  the  survey  up  to  July,  when  an 
attack  upon  the  parly  at  Safed  caused  their  with- 
drawal from  the  country. 

Results — Identificationsof  Alt- xandrium,  Azckah, 
the  Rock  Etam,  Chozeba,  the  tower  of  Ader. 
Maarath,  Arab,  Cliff  of  Ziz,  Zanoah,  Zi])h 
Hareth,  the  Valley  of  Blessing,  Bezeih 
K.ock  of  Maon,  Hachilah,  Debir,  Shocoh. 
Examination  and  special  surveys  of  El 
Ramah,  Mugharet  Suffa,  ISIakkedah,  Masada 
(iath,  Keslah,  (ierar,  Umm  el  Amdan,  Aziz, 
Susieh  Kh.  Khoreisa,  Kh.  el  Mintar,  Kh. 
Bir  el  Seba,  and  El  Ghurra  ;  examination 
of  Pilate's  Aqueduct ;  Levitical  boundary 


APPENDIX  I.  217 


of  Eshtemoa;  essays  on  the  site  of  Nob, 
David's  outlaw  life,  the  rock  scarp  of  Zion, 
mediaeval  topography  of  Palestine,  the 
tempie  of  Herod,  the  tomb  of  David,  the 
site  of  Adullam,  ancient  Jewish  graves,  and 
the  Arabs  in  Palestine. 

Excavations  on  Mount  Zion,  and  discovery  of  part 

of  the  Frst  Wall. 
Journey  of  Mr.  Greville  Chester  to  er  Ruad. 

1876.  In  this  year  the  whole  party  remained  at  home,  and 

were  engaged  in  office  work.  The  amount  of 
survey  work  brought  home  covered  the  whole  of 
Western  Palestine  with  the  exception  of  1,400 
square  miles. 
The  following  important  papers  were  communicated 
to  the  Committee  by  Captain  Conder  :— 

On  the  Early  Christian  Topography  of  Palestine  ; 
on  Rock-cut  Tombs ;  on  Proposed  Tests 
for  the  Survey ;  on  the  First  Traveller  in 
Palestine ;  on  Palestine  before  Joshua ;  on 
the  Language  of  the  Native  Peasantry  ;  on 
the  Fertility  of  Palestine ;  on  Samaritan 
Topography,  &c. 

1877.  The  survey  of  Western  Palestine  was  resumed  by 

Lieutenant  Kitchener,  R.E.,  and  completed  in  the 
teeth  of  difficulties,  owing  to  the  general  excite- 
ment and  the  chances  of  immediate  war. 
The    following     papers    were     communicated     by 
Captain  Conder : — 

On  Megiddo ;  on  Christian  and  Jewish  Tradi- 
tions ;  on  the  Boundaries  of  Ephraim, 
Manasseh  and  Issachar  ;  on  Nob  ;  on  the 
Moslem  Mukams,  and  others. 


2i8  rWENTY-ONE  YEARS'  WORR. 

M.  Clermont  Ganneau  contributed  a  valuable 
paper  on  the  tombs  undc-r  the  Church 
of  the  Holy  Sepulchre,  and  Sir  Charles 
Wilson  various  notes  on  recent  discoveries. 

1878.  Office  work  and  preparation  of  maps  and  memoirs. 

Publications — Papers  on  many  points  connected 
with  the  survey,  especially  on  Joshua's 
Tomb ;  on  Architecture  in  Palestine ;  the 
Site  of  Ai ;  the  Survey  of  Galilee,  (S:c. 

Discovery  of  the  Stone  of  Bethphage. 

Publication  of  Captain  Conder's  Tent  Work  in 
Palestine. 

1879.  Preparation  of  memoirs  and  maps. 

Publications— On  the  Transference  of  Sites,  by 
William  Simpson ;  on  the  Fellaheen  of 
Palestine,  by  A\'m.  Finn ;  on  a  Journey  on 
Foot  through  Arabia  Petrsea,  by  F.  W. 
Holland ;  on  Modern  Researches  in 
Palestine,  by  Selah  Merrill ;  on  a  Journey 
into  Moab,  by  Conrad  Schick. 

Death  of  Mr.  Hepworth  Dixon. 

1880.  Publication  of  the  Great  Map,  and  reduction  for  the 

engraving  of  the  small  map — Printing  of  memoirs. 
Publications — Klein's  Journey  into  Moab; 
Greville  Chester's  Journey  through  the 
Cities  of  the  Delta,  and  Examination  oi 
the  Lacus  Serbonicus;  Sir  Charles  Wilson's 
Treatise  on  the  Masonry  of  the  Haram  Wall. 
Discovery — The  Inscription  of  the  Pool  of  Siloam. 

1881.  Commencement  of  the  survey  of  Eastern  Palestine. 

Discoveries— lr\scr\\A\on  of  Baalbek  ;  Kadesh  ol 
the  Hittites  ;  inscription  at  Homs ;  the 
Egyptian  harbour  of  Tyre ;  Bethulia, 
the    Mountain  of  the  Scape-goat ;   Ain 


APPENDIX  I.  219 


Kadis ;  the  Pool  in  Gibeon ;  Kirjath 
Jearim ;  Beth  Haccerem. 

Publications — The  Decipherment  of  the  Inscrip- 
tion in  the  Pool  of  Siloani,  by  Rev.  Pro- 
fessor Sayce ;  on  the  Old  City  of  Dera'a, 
by  Rev.  Professor  Porter  ;  Sun  Worship 
in  Syria;  the  Topography  of  the  Exodus; 
the  Manners  and  Customs  of  the  Fella- 
heen; the  discovery  of  Ain  Quadis,  or 
Kadis  by  Professor  Trumbull ;  on  the 
Hittites,  by  W.  St.  Chad.  Boscawen. 

First  volume  of  the  Memoirs  of  the  "  Survey  of 
Western  Palestine,"  issued  this  year. 

Death  of  the  Rev.  F.  W.  Holland  and  Major 
Anderson,  R.E. 

1882.     Completion  of  the  first  500  square  miles  of  Eastern 
Palestine. 
Forced  return  of  Captain  Conder. 

Discoveries — A  remarkable  Sassanian  building  at 
Amman ;  over  600  names  formed  and 
noted ;  examination  of  200  ruins ;  400 
cromlechs  sketched ;  36  photographs 
taken ;  identification  of  the  "  Field  of 
Zophim  ;"  the  Ascent  of  Luhith,  Jazer, 
Sibmah,  and  Minnith ;  another  gate  in 
the  eastern  wall. 

Examination  of  the  Hebron  Haram  by  the 
Royal  Party,  accompanied  by  Sir  Charles 
Wilson  and  Captain  Conder. 

Publications  —  Archjeological  notes  by  M. 
Clermont  Ganneau ;  the  Prince's 
Journey  through  the  Holy  Land  ;  Cap- 
tain Conder's  Reports  and  Papers,  &c. 

Death  of  Professor  Palmer. 


220  TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'  WORK. 

1883.  Preparation    of    map    and    memoirs    of     Eastern 

Palestine. 

Publications — Publication  of  the  "  Survey  of 
Western  Palestine,"  Memoirs,  Vols.  II. 
and  III. ;  Special  Papers,  Name  Lists  ; 
Papers  on  the  Exodus,  the  Siloam  inscrip- 
tions, the  Hamath  inscriptions,  the  Sha- 
pira  MSS.,  the  climate  of  Jerusalem,  &c. 

1884.  The  Geological  Expedition — Left  England  Oct.  18, 

1883,  returned  in  the  spring  of  1884;  survey  of 
Wady  Arabah  by  Lieut-Colonel  Kitchener,  R.E. 

Publications — Completion  of  the  Memoirs  of 
Western  Palestine,  by  publication  of  the 
Jerusalem  volumes  and  portfolio  of  plans; 
Conder's  "  Heth  and  Moab  ; "  Conder's 
"Tent  Work  in  Palestine."  Cheap 
edition ;  Papers  in  the  Quarterly  State- 
fnent  by  Sir  Charles  Wilson,  Captain 
Conder,  Mr.  Lawrence  Oliphant,  &c. 

Journey  of  Mr.  Oliphant  into  the  Jaulan. 

1885.  Survey    of    a    portion    of    country    in    the    Jaulan 

by  Herr  Schumacher  {"  Across  the  Jordan ") ; 
Journey  of  Mr.  Guy  Le  Strange  in  Eastern 
Palestine. 

Notes  by  Mr.  Laurence  Oliphant  on  the  Jaulan. 
Publications  —  Papers  by  Canon  Tristram, 
General  Charles  Gordon,  Captain 
Conder,  Sir  John  Coode,  Messrs. 
Greville  Chester,  Selah  Merrill,  W.  F. 
Birch,  Tomkins,  Baker-Greene. 


221 


APPENDIX     II. 


CAPTAIN  CONDER'S  IDENTIFICATIONS  IN 
WESTERN    PALESTINE. 

N.B. — The  Roman  Numerals  I.,  II.,  &zc.,  refer  to  the  Sheets 

of  the  ]\Iap. 

1.  Abel  Meholah,  i   Kings  iv.    12.      Jerome  (Onomasticon 

S.V.,  Abel  Maula)  places  this  10  miles  south  of  Scytho- 
polis  "  in  Aulone "  {i.e.,  the  Jordan  Valley)  which 
indicates  the  present  'Ain  Helweh.     (XII.) 

2.  Abez.    Joshua   xix.    20.      Probably  the  present  ruin  el 

Beida,  at  the  north  end  of  the  plain  of  Esdraelon. 
The  Arabic  exactly  corresponds  to  the  Hebrew  with 
the  same  meaning,  "white."     (VIII.) 

3.  ^(t/^j-/^^//^.  Joshua  xix.  25.     Wrongly  placed  by  Robinson 

near  Banias,  probably  the  present  village  el  Yasif, 
north-east  of  Acre.  It  is  often  mentioned  in  Egyptian 
records,  and  the  proposed  site  agrees  both  with  these 
and  the  Biblical  indications  of  situation.     (III.) 

4.  Adami,  Joshua  xix.  33.     The  present  ruin  Adiiia/i,  on 

the  plateau  south-west  of  the  Sea  of  Galilee,  in  a  satis- 
factory position  with  relation  to  towns  noticed  in  the 
context.     (IX.) 

5.  Adasa,  Kh  'Adaseh.     (XVII.) 

6.  Adullam;  Aid  el  Mia  (Ganneau).     (XXI.) 

7.  Aenon,  'Ainun  (Robinson)     (XII.) 

8.  Ai,  Haiya.     (XVII.) 

9.  Amad,    Joshua   xix.     26.      Apparently   the   ruin    called 

el  'Am lid,  north  of  Acre,  in  correct  relative  position. 
(III.) 


222  TWENTV-ONE  YEARS'  WORK. 


10.  Anah,  Joshua  xv.   50.      The  ruin  'Auab,  west  of  edh 

Dhaheriyeh,  incorrectly  fixed  by  Robinson  at  Deir  esh 
Shems,  east  of  the  same.     (XXV.) 

11.  Ana/iarath,  Joshua  xix.  19.  The  village  en  NaWirah, 
in  correct  relative  position  to  other  towns  of  Issachar. 
(IX.) 

12.  Anon,  I  Chronicles  vi.  73.     The  village  ^An'in,   in  the 

hills  west  of  the  plain  of  Esdraelon,  in  a  satisfactory 
position  within  the  border  of  Manasseh.     (VIII.) 

13.  Aner,  i  Chronicles  vi.  70.     i'ossibly  the  present  village 

Allar,  in  the  hills  south-west  of  the  plain  of  Esdraelon. 

14.  Arab,  Joshua  xv.  32.     The  present  ruin   er  Rabiyeh   in 

suitable  relative  situation.     (XXI.) 
ic,.  Arc/ii,'Ain'Arik.     (XVII.) 

16.  Ataroih  Adar,  ed  Darieh.     (XVII.) 

17.  Baalat/i,   Joshua  xix.    44;    i    Kings  ix,  18;  VIII  Ant. 

vi.  I.  Probably  the  present  village  Be/a'hi,  in  a  suit- 
able position  we.:t  of  Bethhoron  and  commanding  the 
main  road  to  Jerusalem.     (XIV.) 

18.  Baal  Shalisha.  2  Kings  iv.   42.      Probably  the  present 

village  Kefr  Thilth,  in  suitable  situation  in  the  territory 
of  Ephraim  on  the  lower  hills.  The  Arabic  Thiltli  is 
derived  from  the  Hebrew  Shalish  ("three  ").     (XIV.) 

19.  Bahurim,  'Almit.     (XVII.) 

20.  Berea,  Bireh.     (XVII.) 

21.  Betai,    Joshua   xix.    25.       Is   identified    by    Eusebius 

(Onomasticon  s.v.,  Bathnai),  with  a  village,  Beth  Beten, 
8  miles  east  of  Acre.  This  seems  to  indicate  the 
\\\\:{gQ:  el  Baneh.     (IV.) 

22.  Bcthabara,  'Aba rah.     (IX.) 

23.  Beth  B)agon,  Joshua  xix.  27.    Probably  the  present  ruin 

Till  Uauk,  in  correct  relative  position  near  the  mouth 
of  the  river  Belus.  (Compare  Dagon  or  Docus,  near 
Jericho,  now  'Ain  Duk.)     (\'.) 


APPENDIX  II.  22- 


24.  Beth  Shemesh  (of  Issachar),  Joshua  xix,   22.      Possibly 

the  ruined  site  ^  Ain  esh  Shemslyeh,  in  the  Jordan  Valley, 
(IX.) 

25.  Bethuiia,  MitJiilia.     (VIII.) 

26.  Beto)nesihain  (Judith  iv.  6).     The  present  ruin  Massln. 

(VIII.) 

27.  Bezek,  Judges  i.  5.     Probably  the  ruin  Bezka/i,  souih  of 

Lydda.     (XIII.) 

28.  Bezek,  I  Samuel  xi.  8.     Bezik.     (XII.) 

29.  Calvary\  el  Heidhemiyeh.     (XVII.) 

30.  Charashiiji  (Valley),  i  Chronicles  iv.  14,    mentioned   in 

connection  with  Lod  and  Ono  (Nehemiah  xi.  35).  The 
name  survives  at  Khiirbet  Hirsha,  on  the  bank  of  the 
great  valley  east  of  Lydda.     (XVII.) 

31.  Chezlb,  Genesis  xxxviii  5;  Joshua  xv.  44.  The  name 
appears  to  linger  at  the  spring  'Ain  Kezbe/i,  near  Beit 
Netdf,  in  a  satisfactory  position  in  relation  to  other 
towns  of  the  same  group.  Jerome  (Onomasticon  s.v.) 
makes  Chasbi  a  ruined  site  near  AduUam,  which  agrees. 
(XXI.) 

32.  Clioba  or  Chobai,  Judith  iv.  4.  The  Peutinger  Tables 
place  Coabis  12  miles  south  of  Scythopolis.  This 
points  to  the  ruin  called  el  Alekhobby,  on  the  ancient 
road  from  Shechem.  The  name  has  the  meaning 
"  hiding  place."     (XII.) 

12,.  Cbozcba,  1  Chronicles  iv.  22.  Possibly  the  ruin 
Kuieziba,  north-east  of  Hebron.     (XXI.) 

34.  Dannah  ("low  ground"),  Joshua  xv.  49.     Probably  the 

village  Idhnah  in  the  low  hills.  The  position  ai)pears 
suitable.     (XXI.) 

35.  Debir,  edh  Dhaheriyeh.     (XXV.) 

36.  Diblath,  Ezekiel  vi.    14.     Apparently  the  village  Dibl, 

in  Upper  Galilee,  unless  it  be  an  error  for  Riblah. 
(IV) 


224  TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'   WORK. 

37.  Ebenezer,  possibly  Deir  Abau*     (XVII.) 

38.  Edrei,  Joshua  xix.  37.  Apparently  the  present  village 
Y'ater.      The    relative  position   is    suitable,    and    the 

letters  T  and  D  often  interchanged.     (IV.) 

39.  Eleasa,  The  ruin  IPasa. 

40.  E/eph,  Joshua  xviii.  28.  The  present  village  Li/ta, 
west  of  Jerusalem.  The  situation  agrees  with  the 
boundary  of  Judah.     See  p.  10. 

41.  Efon,  Joshua  xix.  43.  Probably  the  present  village, 
JSeit  Ellii.     The  relative  situation  is  satisfactory. 

42.  Elon  Beth  Hanan  ("plain  of  13.  Hanan  "),  I  Kings  iv. 
9.  Probably  the  village  Beit  'Ajuhi,  in  the  low  hills 
east  of  Lydda.  The  situation  agrees  with  the  context. 
(XVII.) 

43.  Emmaiis,  possibly  Khamasa.     (XVII.) 

44.  Elfekeh,  Joshua  xix.  44.  Apparently  Beit  Likia,  in 
the  territory  of  Dan.  In  the  list  of  the  victories  of 
Sennacherib  (Assyrian  Discoveries,  pp.  302-305),  the 
"  plains  of  Eltekeh"  are  mentioned  with  towns  of  Dan. 
This  agrees  with  the  situation  of  the  modern  village. 
(XVII.) 

45.  Enam.  Joshua  xv.  34.  Possibly  the  ruin  '^////;,  in  the 
low  hills  south-west  of  Jerusalem.  The  relative 
situation  appears  satisfactory.  The  change  of  N  to  L 
and  M  to  N  is  not  unusual.     (XVII.) 

46.  Engannim  (of  Judah),  Joshua  xv.  34.  Apparently  the 
present  ruin  Uiiim  Jhia.  The  relative  situation  is 
satisfactory.     (XVI.)     (Clermont  Ganneau.) 

47.  Enhaddah,  Joshua  xix.  21.  Probably  the  present  ruin 
Kefr  Adan,  south-west  of  the  Plain  of  Esdraelon.  The 
situation  appears  probable.     (VIII.) 

*  M.  C.  Ganneau  identified  Deir  Abau  with  the  Abel  of  ]!eth 
Shemesh.  The  identification  with  the  Ebenezer  of  the  Ononia^ticon 
was  firbt  suggested  by  Captain  Conder. 


APPENDIX  IT.  225 


48.  Eshean,  Joshua  xv.  52.  Possibly  the  ruin  es  Shnia, 
near  Dumah  (Domeh),  south  of  Hebron.  The  situation 
is  satisfactory,  and  the  site  ancient.     (XXI.) 

49.  Esora,  Judith  iv.  4.  Probably  the  village  'Asireh,  north 
ofShechem.     The  situation  is  suitable.     (XI) 

50.  Etam.  2  Chronicles  xi.  6.  The  present  ruin  ' Aitun, 
south-west  of  Hebron.  The  situation  agrees  with  the 
context.     (XX.) 

51.  ^/«;«  (Rock).     Beit'Atab.     (XVH.) 

52-  Ether,  Joshua  xv.  42.  Probably  the  r\i\neVAtr,  near 
Beit  Jibrin,  on  the  west.  The  situation  appears  satis- 
factory.    (XX.) 

53.  Gcil/i'ii,  I  Samuel  xxv.  44  ;  Isaiah  x.  30.  Possibly  the 
village  Beit  Jala  near  Bethlehem.     (XVII.) 

54.  Gedera/i,  Joshua  xv.  36  (mentioned  in  the  Ono- 
masticon,  s.v.  Gedor,  as  10  miles  from  Eleutheropolis, 
on  the  road  to  Diospolis),  the  important  ruin  oijedireh. 
The  situation  appears  to  agree  with  the  context. 
(XVI.) 

55.  Gederah  (of  Benjamin),  i  Chronicles  xii.  4.  The 
present  xum/edireh,  north  of  Jerusalem.     (XVH.) 

56.  Gederot/i,  Joshua  xv.  41.  Probably  from  its  situation 
the  present  village  Katra/i,  near  Yebnah,  as  proposed 
also  by  Colonel  Warren,  R.E.     (XVI.) 

57.  Gezer,  Teil  Gezer  {C  Ga.nne?i.n).     (XVI.) 

58.  Gtbbethon,  Joshua  xix.  44.  Probably  the  present 
village  Kibbiah,  at  the  foot  of  the  hills  near  Lydda.  The 
situation  agrees  with  the  context.     (XIV.) 

59.  Gibea/i,  Joshua  xviii.  28.  The  present  xumjibia,  in 
the  territory  of  Benjamin.     (XVH.) 

60.  Gibeah-ha-Elohim,  i  Samuel  x.  5  :  and  i  Samuel  xv.  3. 
Now  Jab' a. 

61.  Gibeah  Phinehas.     ^Aivertah.     (XII.) 

62.  Gilead  Mount.     The  name  exists  in  ]V.  Jaliid.     (IX.) 

P 


2  26  TWENTY-ONE  YEARS  WORK. 

6z.   Cilgal.     Theruin  of  Jiljulieh.     (XVIII.) 

64.    Giloh,  Joshua  xv.   51.      Probably  the  xmn  Jala  in  the 

Hebron    Mountains.     The  situation  appears  to  agree 

with  the  context.     (XXI.) 
6s.  Hac/nlah{li\\\).     l^ov.' el  A'o/a/i.      (XXI.) 

66.  Hammon,  Joshua  xix.  28.  Apparently  the  ruin  Hima, 
south-east  of  Tyre.  The  situation  appears  to  be  satis- 
factor>'.     (III.) 

67.  HannatJwn,  Joshua  xix.  14.  On  the  boundary  of 
Zebulon  and  Naphtali.  The  present  village  Kefr  'Anan. 
(VI.) 

68.  Haphraipi,  Joshua  xix.  14.  In  the  Onomasticon,  s.v., 
the  village  Affarea  is  placed  6  miles  north  of  Legio  {el 
Lejjiin) ;  this  fixes  it  at  the  ancient  ruined  site  el 
Farnyeh,  which  appears  to  be  a  suitable  position  for 
the  Biblical  town.     (VIII) 

69.  JIareth,  now  Kharas.     (XXI.) 

70.  Ha7'od.     Yo%%\\i\^''Ai7t  el  Jemm^am.     (IX.) 

71.  ^flrst'r,  Joshua  xi.  i.  i^fl'/zv//,  near  Robinson's  site. (IV.) 

72.  Hazor,  Nehemiah  xi.  2)Z-  Evidently  the  ruin  Hazzur 
north  of  Jerusalem,     (XVII.) 

73.  Horcm,  Joshua  xix.  38.  Apparently  the  ruin  Harah. 
The  situation  seems  possible.     (IV.) 

74.  Hozah,  Joshua  xix.  29.  Apparently  the  present  ruin 
Ozziyeh,  on  the  coast  south  of  Tyre.  The  situation  is 
satisfactory,  and  the  changes  of  'Ain  for  Kheth  and  of 
Zain  for  Tzadi,  are  both  recognised.     (III.) 

75.  Ijon  ("ruin"),  i  Kings  xv.  20.  Possibly  Khiydvi,  in 
the  Merj  'Ajiin,  west  of  Banias.  The  name  survives 
latter  title,  but  the  former  may  be  a  corruption  and 
represent  the  exact  site.     (II.) 

76.  /r/>eel,  ]oshua.  xviii.  27.  Probably  the  village  /^d/dl, 
north  of  Jerusalem.  The  name  is  derived  from  a 
similar  root,  and  the  situation  is  satisfactory.     (XVII.) 


APPENDIX  II.  227 


77.  Jabneel,  Joshua  xix.  33.  A  town  of  Naphtali  stated 
in  the  Jerusalem  Talmud  (Megillah  i.  i)  to  have  been 
called  at  a  later  period  Caphar  Yama.  This  indicates 
ruin  Yenuna,  and  the  situation  agrees  with  that  of  the 
other  towns  in  this  group.     (VI.) 

78.  Janoah,  2  Kings  xv.  29.  The  present  village  Yaniih 
in  the  hills  south-east  of  Tyre.  The  situation  appears 
satisfactory  as  within  the  territory  of  Naptali.  There 
is  a  second  YanuJi  further  south.     (11.) 

79.  Janum,  Joshua  xv.  53.  Probably  the  village  Beni 
Nairn,  east  of  Hebron.  The  situation  appears  to 
agree  with  the  context.     (XXI.) 

80.  Jeshanah,  2  Chronicles  xiii.  19.  The  situation  points 
to  the  identification  of  this  site  with  the  ancient  village 
'Ain  Sinia.     (XIV.)     (Clermont  Ganneau.) 

81.  Jeshtia,  Nehemiah  xi.  26.  Probably  the  present  ruin 
Sa7m,  east  of  Beersheba.  The  situation  is  relatively 
satisfactory.     (XXV.) 

82.  /ethlah,  Joshua  xix.  42.  Probably  the  ruin  Beit  Till, 
in  the  low  hills  west  of  Jerusalem.  The  situation 
appears  probable.     (XVII.) 

S3.  Joktheel,  Joshua  xv.  38.  Belonging  to  a  group  of 
which  little  is  yet  known.  Possibly  the  large  ruin 
Kntlaneh,  south  of  Gezer.  The  words  are  from  similar 
roots.     (XVI.) 

84.  Kedesh  (in  Issachar),  i  Chronicles  vi.  72.  Possibly 
the  ancient  site  Tell  Abu  Kndeis  near  Lejjun.     (VIII.) 

85.  Kibzaim,  Joshua  xxi,  22.  The  name  is  radically 
identical  with  that  of  Tell  Abu  Kabfis,  near  Bethel. 
The  situation  is  not  impossible.     (XVII.) 

86.  Kirjatli,  Joshua  xviii.  28.  The  present  Kuriet  el 
'Anab  is  more  generally  known  to  the  natives  as 
Kurieh.  The  situation  agrees  well  for  Kirjath  of 
Benjamin,  but  not  for  Kirjath  Jearim.     (XVII.) 

P  2 


228  TWENTY-ONE   YEARS   WORK'. 

87.  Kirjathjcarim.     Probably  'Erma.     (XVII.) 

88.  Lac/iis/i,  Joshua  x.  3.  (In  the  Onomasticon,  s.v.,  this 
city  is  placed  7  Roman  miles  south  of  Eleutheropolis 
B.  Jibrin.)  'I'he  site  of  Tell  el  Hesy  nearly  agrees 
with  this,  and  is  more  satisfactory  than  Utii/n  Lakis 
proposed  by  Robinson.  The  identification  supposes 
the  change  of  Caph  to  Kheth,  of  which  \ve  *have  an 
accepted  instance  in  the  case  of  Michmash.     (XX.) 

89.  LaJwiam,  Joshua  xv.  40.  Possibly  the  ruins  el  Lahiri, 
near  Beit  Jibrin.  The  situation  appears  satisfactory, 
and  the  site  is  ancient.     (XX.) 

90.  Lasharon,  Joshua  xii.  18.  Apparently  in  Lower 
Galilee.  Possibly  the  ruin  Saroiia,  west  of  the  Sea  of 
Galilee.  Jerome  (Onomasticon,  s.v.)  says  that  the 
plain   east  of  Tabor  was  called    Sharon   in   his   time. 

{VI. ) 

91.  Liiz,  Judges  i.  26.  Possibly  the  ruin  Lueizeh,  west  of 
Banias,  on  the  border  of  the  Hittite  country.     (II.) 

92.  Maarath,  Joshua  xv.  59.  Probably  from  its  relative 
position  the  present  village  Beit  Ummar  {the.  Bethamari 
of  the  Onomasticon.)     (XXI.) 

93.  Madjna>niah,  Joshua  xv.  31.  Possibly  the  ruin  U/ntii 
Deimnch,  north  of  Beersheba.  The  situation  appears 
satisfactory.     (XXIV.) 

94.  Madon,  Joshua  xi.  i.  Apparently  in  Lower  Galilee, 
perhaps  the  ruin  Madiii  close  to  Hattin.     (VI.) 

95.  Ma/ianeh  Dan,  near  'Erma.     (XVII.) 

96.  Makkedah,  el  Mughar  (Warren).     (XVI.) 

97.  Manahath,  i  Chronicles  viii.  6.  Possibly  the  village 
Malhah,  south-west  of  Jerusalem,  which  appears  to  be 
the  Manocho  of  Joshua  xv.  60  (inserted  passage  in 
LXX).     The  change  of  L  for  N  is  common. 

9S.  Maralah,  Joshua  yS\.  11.  According  to  the  descrip- 
tion of  the  boundary  of  Zebulon,   this  would  occupy 


APPENDIX  II.  229 


about  the  position  of  the  present  village  Malid.     The 

L  and  R  are  easily  convertible.     (VIII.) 
99.  Mearah,    Joshua    xiii.    4.       Apparently   Mogheiriyeh, 

north  of  Sidon. 
100.  Megiddo,  possibly  Mujedd'a.     (IX.) 
loi.  Meronoth,  i   Chronicles  xxvii.   30.     Possibly  the  ruin 

Marrhia,  in  the  Hebron  hills.     (XXI.) 

102.  Mis/ieal^  Joshua  xix.  26.  Probably  the  ruin  MahMi, 
near  Acre.  The  situation  is  suitable  for  a  town  of 
Asher.     (III.) 

103.  Mozah,  Joshua  xviii.  26.  According  to  the  Jerusalem 
Talmud,  was  called  Kolonia.  A  ruin>  called  Beit 
Mizzeh  exists  near  Kolonia,  west  of  Jerusalem,  in  a 
suitable  situation.     (XVII.)    (C.  F.  T.  Drake.) 

104.  iV^d'Wd'//,  Joshua  XV.  41.  Probably  iVa'^«^//,  south  of 
Ramleb,  as  proposed  by  Colonel  Warren,  R.E.  The 
situation  is  suitable.     (XVI.) 

105.  Nahallal,  Joshua  xix.  15.  According  to  the  Jerusalem 
Talmud  (Megilla  i.  i)  this  place  was  called,  at  a  later 
period,  Mahlul.  This  seems  to  indicate  the  village 
'Ain  Ma/iii,  in  a  suitable  position.     (VI.) 

106.  Nebo,  Ezra  ii.  29.  Perhaps  NiWa,  south  of  Jerusalem. 
(XXI.) 

107.  iV^7>/ (Han-N'aial),  Joshua  xix.  27.  The  ruin  Y'anin 
is  found  in  the  required  position.  The  change  in  the 
position  of  the  guttural  and  of  N  for  L  is  not  unusual. 
(V.) 

108.  Ah'keb,  Joshua  xix.  33.  The  Jerusalem  Talmud 
(Megilla  i.  1)  gives  the  later  name  of  this  site  as 
Siadetha.  This  points  to  the  ruin  Seiyada  on  the 
plateau  west  of  the  Sea  of  Galilee,  a  position  agreeing 
with  the  context.     (VI,) 

109.  Nep/iioa/i,  Joshua  xv.  9  (a  spring).  The  Talmud  of 
Babylon  (Yoma  31a)  identifies  this  with  the  Kn  Klam, 


23D  TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'   WORK. 

whence  an  aqueduct  led  to  the  Temple.  This  indicates 
'Ain  'Atan,  south  of  Bethlehem.  See  p.  lo.  (XVII.) 
no.  C^/Z/zv?//,  Judges  vi.  ii.  Probably  Ferata,  near  Shechem, 
the  ancient  name  of  which  was  Ophrah  (see  Samaritan 
Chronicle).     (XI.) 

111.  Piratlio)i,  Judges  xij.  15,  and  Pharathoni  (i  Mace.  ix. 
50).  Possibly  Fe'ron,  west  of  Shechem.  The  loss  of 
the  T  is  not  unusual,  and  the  present  name  retains  the 
guttural.     (XI.) 

112.  Rahbah,  Joshua  xv.  60.  Possibly  the  ruin  Rjibba,  west 
ofBeit  Jibrin.     (XXL) 

113.  Rabbith,  Joshua  xix.  20.  The  present  village  7?<7/^«, 
south-east  of  the  plain  of  Esdraelon,  appears  to  be  in  a 
suitable  position.     (XII.) 

114.  Rakkon  ("shore")  Joshua  xix.  46.  The  situation  of 
Tell  er  Rakkeit  aj^jjears  suitable,  north  of  Jaffa,  near 
the  mouth  of  the  river  Aujeh  (probably  Mejarkon). 
(XIII.) 

115.  6)2^/^,  Joshua  xix.  10.  The  Syriac  version  reads  Asdod, 
and  the  LXX  reads  Sadouk  (Vat.  MS.).  The  original 
may  be  thought  to  have  been  Sadid,  in  which  case  Tell 
Sliadud  occupies  a  very  probable  position  for  this  site 
(compare  Maralah).     (VI IJ.) 

116.  6'^cfl'ra//,  Joshua  XV.  61.  In  the  Judean  desert.  Possibly 
the  ruin  S/kkf/i,  east  of  Bethany.     (XVII.) 

117.  Scchu,  ^rohsXAy  Suzueckeh.     (XVII.) 

118.  ^V;/t'// (Rock),  IVady  Suwciiut.     (XVII.) 

119.  S/iaaraim,  Joshua  xv.  36.  The  rmn  St  aire k,  west  oi 
Jerusalem,  occupies  a  suitable  position.     (XVIJ.) 

120.  Skai/iir,  Joshua  xv.  48.  Probably  the  ruin  6ir5;//<'r(7//, 
west  of  Uhaheriyeh,  the  situation  being  suitable  to  the 
context.     (XXIV.) 

121.  Skartiken,  ]os\\\\:{  xix.  6.  Vroh7vh\y  Tell  esh  Skert^ak. 
The    position    is   suitable,  and  the  conversion  of  the 


APPENDIX  11.  231 


guttural   Kheth  to  'Ain  is  of  constant  occurrence,  as  is 

also  the  loss  of  the  final  N.     (XXIV.) 
122.  Sorek  (Valley).     The  name  6'//'r//C' was  found  applying 

to  a  ruin  north  of  this  valley,  as  mentioned  in  the  Ono- 

masticon.     (XVII.) 
I  23.    Thininatha.,  Joshua  xix.  43.     Generally  identified  with 

Timnah  of  Judah,  appears  more  probably  to  be  Tibneh, 

north-east  of  Lydda,  on  the  border  of  Dan.      (XIV.) 

124.  Timnath  Ueres,  K.q{x  Yla.ri'a.     (XIV.) 

125.  Tiphs/iah,i:ak.Si\\.     (XIV). 

126.  Tirzah,  Teiasir.     (XII.) 

127.  Umniah,  Joshua  xix.  30.  The  ruin  'Alma  occupies  a 
suitable  position  in  the  territory  of  Asher.  The  L 
represents  the  Hebrew  M  and  the  guttural  is  preserved. 
(HI.) 

128.  Uzzen  S/ierah,  i  Chronicles  vii.  24.  Mentioned  with 
Bethhoron.  Possibly  Beit  Sira,  south-west  of  the  site 
ofBethhoron.     (XVII.) 

129.  Zrt'rt'/zrt'//;/,  Bessum.      (VI.) 

130.  Zartanah,  i  Kings  iv.  12.  Mentioned  as  "beneath 
Jezreel."  Probably  the  large  site  of  Tell  Sdretn,  near 
Beisan,     (IX.) 

131.  Zereda,  i  Kings  xi.  26.  In  Mount  Ephraim.  Probably 
the  present  Surdeh,  west  of  Bethel.     (XIV.) 

132.  Z/2;  (Ha  Ziz)  (ascent  of),  2  Chronicles  XX.  16.  Probably, 
connected  with  the  name  Hazezon  Tamar,  for  Engedi, 
Genesis  xiv.  7  ;  2  Chronicles  xx.  2.  The  name  Hasasali 
was  found  to  apply  to  the  plateau  north-west  of  Engedi. 
(XXII.) 

This  list  contains  132  names.  Out  of  about  620  topo- 
graphical names  mentioned  in  the  Bible  in  Western  Palestine, 
about  430  have  now  been  identified  (or  about  two-thirds). 
Out  of  these  430  a  total  of  132,  as  above  shown  (or  about  a 
third),  are  thus  due  to  the  survey. 


232  TWENTY-ONE   YEARS'   WORK. 

On  the  other  hand,  out  of  about  200  names  of  the  places 
in  the  Sinaitic  Desert,  or  in  the  country  east  of  Jordan,  70 
only  are  known,  including  the  latest  identifications  of  the 
American  survey  and  of  Lieutenant  Conder  (Handbook  to 
the  Bible),  being  a  proportion  of  little  over  one-third.  Many 
important  sites,  such  as  Mahanaim,  Jabesh  Gilead,  &c., 
remain  still  to  be  recovered  east  of  Jordan. 

In  addition  to  this  list  published  in  1880,  several  new 
identifications  by  Captain  Conder  will  be  found  in  the  later 
Quarterly  Statements,  and  those  of  the  Eastern  Survey  are 
given  in  "  Heth  and  Moab." 


INDEX. 


Abana  River,  136. 

Abel  Meholah,  112. 

Abdeh  (Eboda),  71. 

Acra,  49. 

Acre,  Plain  of,  84. 

Adasa,  119. 

Admeh  (ed  Damieh),  82,  loi. 

Adullam,  106,  118,  ijo. 

^non,  120,  121. 

Ai,  99. 

'Ain  Abu  Beweireh,  144. 

'Ain  Feshkhah,  92. 

'Ain  el  Haramlyeh,  119. 

'Ain  Hawarah,  145. 

'Ain  Hudherah,  66. 

'Ain  el  Jem'ain,  1 14. 

'Ain  Tabighah,  44. 

'Ain  et  Tin,  44. 

Akabah  and  Gulf,  142-145. 

Alemoth  (Alnion),  118. 

Amman  (Sassanian  Building),   17S, 

183,  184,  199. 
Ancient  Monuments,  138. 
Antonia,  Tower  of,  49. 
Ansierlyeh  Mountains,  152. 
Antipatris,  86,  120,  123. 
Annath  (Aina),  123. 
Aqueduct  (the  great  tunnel  from  the 

spring  to  the  Pool  of  Silciam),  158. 
Arak  el  Emir,  136,  138,  199. 
Archi  (Arik),  1 11. 
Argob  or  Trachonitis  (el  Lejah),  134. 
Armitheaa,  80. 
Arnon  River,  135. 
Aroer,  135. 
Aroer  of  Judah,  70. 
Arunalha  or  Ilanruta,  155. 
Ascension,  Site  of,  63. 
Ashdod,  119. 

Ataroth  Adan  (ed  Damieh),  in. 
Athlit,  199. 
el  Augeh,  71. 
Auvanitis  (Ilauran),  134. 


Avim,  80. 

el  Awamid  (Inscription  at),  40. 
'Ayun  Abu  Meharib,  91. 
Azazimeh,  Mountains  of,  72. 

Baal,  Altars  of,  65. 

Baal  Meon,  139. 

Baal  Peor,  137. 

Baalbek,  and  church  at,  ^^,  45. 

Bab  el  Burak,  45. 

Baheiret  Homs,  153. 

Baheiret  Koteineh,  153. 

Bahurim,  118. 

Bamoth  Baal,  137. 

Banias,  39,  40. 

Baris,  Tower  of,  158. 

Bashan,  Land  of,  134. 

Basilica  of  the  Antastasis,  160. 

Batanrea,  135. 

Beersheba,  69,  70,  102,  103,  104. 

Beisau,  39,  115. 

Beibin,  Church  at,  39. 

Beit  Jibrin,  Church  at,  39. 

Berea  (Bireh),  119. 

Bethany,  ii8. 

Bethel,  loO. 

Bethabara,  94,  95,  96,  97,  112.  120, 

121. 
Bethaven,  100. 
Bethulia,  119. 
Beth  Dagon,  107. 
Bethlehem,  99. 

Bethphnge,  Stone  of,  132,   177,   178. 
Beth  Rima,  123. 
Bethsaida,  121,  135. 
Berzetho  (Bir  ez  Zeit),  119. 
Beyrout,  39. 
Bezek,  115. 
Bezetha,  Vase  of,  132. 
Biblical  Names,  80. 
Bir  Eyub,  160,  166. 
Bireh,  Cluirch  at,  39. 
Birket  Mamilla,  160, 


234 


IXDEX. 


Birket  Israil,  159. 
Birket  es  Sultan,  160. 
Bitzaanaim  near  Kedesh,  82,  84. 
Borceos  (Berkit),  123. 
Boundaries,  Tribal,  iio. 
Bozez,  Cliff  of,  1 16. 
Bozrah,  136. 
Brook  Besor,  So. 
Brook  Cherith,  80. 

Caesarea,  39,  199. 
Ccesarea  Phillippi,  135. 
Ca'.lirrhoe,  136. 
Calvary,  120,  123. 
Cana  of  Galilee,  96,  120. 
Capernaum  (near  Athlit),  89. 
Capernaum   (Tell    Hum),    99,    120, 

122. 
Caphar  Saba,  87. 
Cherith,  Brook,  93. 
Chorazin  (Kerazeh),  41,  42. 
Cities  of  the  Plain,  91,  loi. 
Constantine's  Basilica,  50. 
Constantine's  Church  of  the  Anas- 

tasis,  49,  53. 
Cotton  Clrotto,  158. 
Crocodile  River,  98. 

Damascus,  40,  44,  135. 

Datreiyeh,  71. 

David,'  Tower  of,  59,  159,  205. 

Debbet  er  Ramleh,  142. 

Debir,  71,  106,  in. 

Deir  Aban,  115. 

Deir  el  Kal'ah,  Temple  at,  40. 

Dibcn  and  the  Moabite  Stone,  135, 

136,  160-165. 
Dog  River,  152. 
Dome  of  the   Rock,  49,  53,  59,  63, 

160. 
Double  Gate,  57,  59,  160. 

Kdom,  72. 
Elah,  116. 
Elealah,  139. 
Elcasa  (Hasa),  119. 
Kleph,  80. 

Kleutherus  River,  152. 
hlusa  (Khalasah),  70. 
Emmaus,  120,  121. 
Emniaus  Nicopolis,  120. 


Endor,  84. 

En  Ilarod,  112. 

En  Rogel,  166. 

Esek,  Well  of,  70,  I02,  104. 

Eshcol,  66,  80. 

Eshtaol,  1 14. 

Etam,  Rock,  89. 

Ezcl,  The  Stone,  80. 

Gadara,  135. 

Galilee,  Lake  or  Sea  of,  76,  82,  98, 

122. 
Galilee,  Upper,  82,  84. 
Galilee,  Synagogues  and  Chronicles 

of,  47,  79- 
Gate  Beautiful,  The,  49. 
Gate  Gennath,  45,  49,  160. 
(}ates  of  the  Walls,  49. 
Gath,  80,  116,  125. 
Gaza  Jupiter,  170-173. 
Gederoth,  107. 
Genesareth,  Lake  of,  39,  43. 
Gerar,  102,  104. 
Gethsemane,  80. 
Gezer,  106,  173,  177. 
Ghor,  The,  143,  144,  146. 
Ghor  es  Seiseban,  loi,  185. 
Gibeah,  99. 
Gibeah  Phinehas,  loS. 
Gibeah  of  Saul,  116. 
Gilboa,  Mount,  114. 
Gilead,  Land  of,  135. 
Gilead,  Mount,  112,  115. 
Gilgal  (Jiljidieh),  106. 
Golan  (Jaulan),  134. 
Golden  Gate,  160. 
Golgotha,  Tomb  near,  186   192,  2(2. 
Clomorrah,  92. 
(Ireat  Plain,  82. 
(iulf  of  Suez,  146. 

Hachilah,  116,  118. 
Hagar's  Well,  66. 
Haifa,  78. 

Hamath  Inscriptions,  178. 
Haradah,  66. 

Haram  esh  Sherif  (site  of  Temple), 
49.  5o>  52,  53.  55.  57.  59,  60,  62. 
Hareth,  116. 
Harosheth,  84. 
Harran,  40. 


INDEX. 


235 


Hauran,  147,  148. 

Hazor,  106. 

Hazeroth,  65. 

Head  of  Hadrian,  170. 

Hebron,  39,  54,  66,  99,  102. 

Herod's  Temple  and  Greek  Inscrijj- 

tion,  45,  132. 
Herodian  Temple,  45. 
Heshbon,  135,  139,  183. 
Hezekiah's  Pool,  159. 
Hippicus,  Tower  of,  49. 
Holy  Sepulchre  (Tomb  belnw),  59. 
Holy  Sepulchre,  Church  of  the,  49, 

50,  206. 
Holy  Sepulchre,  Site  of,  62,  63. 
Holy  Fire,  54. 
Horns,  1 52-1 55- 
Hora,  71. 
Huleh,  Lake  of,  147,  148. 


Ibzik  (Bezek),  81. 
Irbid,  Synagogue  at, 
Iturrea,  134. 


41. 


Jabbok  River,  39,  136,  1 84. 

Jacob's  Well,  54,  99,  121,  192-197. 

Jahaz,  135. 

jaulan,  147. 

jazer,  137. 

Jebel  es  Somrah,  144. 

Jebel  Usdum,  148. 

Jericho,  91. 

Jerusalem,  39,  45,  59,  69. 

Jezreel,  112,  115,  118. 

Jishuh,  87. 

Jordan,  39. 

Jordan,  Fords  of  the,  95,  97. 

Jordon  Valley,  143,  147,  14S. 

Joshua's  Tomb,  107. 


Kadesh  Barnea,  66,  67,  6^. 
Kadesh  of  the  Hittites,  136,  150   156. 
Kanah,  lirook.  III. 
Kal'at  Jalud,  59. 
Karkor,  112. 

Kasyum,  Inscription  at,  40. 
Kades,  Temple  at,  Inscription  and 
Excavation,  40,  45,  82. 


Kefr  Haris,  107. 

Kefr  Birim,   Inscription  and    Syna 

gogue,  40,  41. 
Kepharnome,  44. 
Kerak,  72,  136. 
Kedron  Valley,  166. 
Khan  Minyeh,  44. 
Khersa  (Gergesa),  44. 
Kibroth  Hattaavah,  65. 
Kir  Haraseth,  135. 
Kirjath  Jearim,  no,  114,  115. 
Kishon  River,  84. 
Kubbet  es  Sahkra,  62. 
Kurmel,  71- 
Kuryet  el  Anab,  Church  at,  39. 


Lacus  Serbonicus,  150. 
Lebanon,  150,  152. 
Leben  (Curdled  Milk), 
Llsan,  72. 

Luhith,  Ascent  of,  137, 
Lydda,  Church  at,  39. 


85- 


Machoerus,  136. 

Mahanneh  Dan,  1 14. 

Main,  71. 

Makkedah,  106. 

Mamre,  80. 

Maon,  118. 

el  Mereighat,  185. 

Marianme,  Tower  of,  49. 

Masada,  199. 

ALashita,  136. 

Masi,  Inscription  at,  40. 

Medeba,  139. 

Megiddo,  84,  119. 

Mejarkon,  87. 

Mejdel  Anjar,  Temple  at,  40. 

Michmash,  99,  lOO. 

Millo,  49. 

Minnilh,  137,  184. 

Minyeh,  122. 

Moab,  72,  135. 

Modin,  119,  132. 

Mokattani  Hills  (above  Cairo),  145. 

Monuments  in   the   Kedron   N'alle), 

158- 
Mosque  el  Aksa,  160. 

Mount  Azotus,  1 19. 


236 


INDEX. 


Mount  Gerizim  (Church  of  Justinian), 

39,  45- 

Mount  Hor,  72,  143. 

Mount  Nebo,  184. 

Mount  Zion,  59. 

el  Muntar  (Izuk,  scene  of  the  scape- 
goat, 104. 

Naamah,  107. 

Nabhis,  Mosque  and  Inscription  at, 
46. 

Nagb  es  Sahii,  142. 

Nahr  el  Kelb,  Tablets  of  Sennac- 
herib, 40,  41. 

Nawamls,  64. 

Nazareth,  91. 

Nebo,  139. 

Nebratein,  Inscription  at,  40,  41. 

Neby  Hazkln  (Ezekiel's  Mountain), 
81. 

Neby  Serakah,  87. 

Negeb  of  Jerahmeel,  71. 

Negeb  or  South  Country,  71,  72. 

Nephtoah,  Waters  of,  100. 

Nicodenuis,  Tomb  of,  15S. 

Nob,  80,  116. 

Nobah,  112. 

Ophel,  Wall  of,  58,  158. 
Orontes,  151,  153. 

Patris  (Budrus),  87. 
Pennel,  112. 
Tetra,  72,  142,  199. 
I'harphar  River,  136. 
I'hasaclus,  Tower  of,  49. 
Pisgah,  139. 

Psephinus,  Tower  of,  49. 
Pool  of  Bethesda,  49. 
Pool  of  Bathsheba,  160. 

Uabbath  Ammon,  136,  I  38. 

Rabbath  Moab,  135. 

Rabbith,  in. 

Rachel's  Tomb,  54. 

Ramath  Lehi,  91. 

Ramoth  (lilead,  135. 

Ras  el  Ain,  87,  88. 

Red  Sea,  45. 

Rehoboth,  Wells  of,  70,  102. 

Riblah,  15-5. 


Robinson's  Arch,  190. 

Round  P'ountain,  44. 

Ruad,  Island  of,  150,  152. 

Rude  Stone  Monuments,  183- 1 86. 

es  Safieh,  144. 

Sahm  or  Salem,  121. 

Salt   Sea,   or  Dead  Sea,   loi,   142, 

144,  146,  148. 
Samaria,  119,  123. 
Samaritans,  Holy  Place  or  Rock  of 

the,  39,  45. 
Samaritans,  Pentateuch,  45. 
Samaritan  Temple.  45. 
Samrat  Fiddan,  148. 
Sebastiyeh  (Samaria),  39. 
Sechu,  116. 

Second  Wall,  59,  63,  205,  2IO. 
Sela-ham  Mahlekoth,  116. 
Seneh,  Cliff  of,  115,  116. 
Sharon,  Plain  of,  86. 
Shechem,  99,  115. 
Sibmah,  137. 
Siloam,  Vill  of,  165. 
Siloam,    Pool   and    Inscription    of, 

160,  166,  169,  170. 
Sinai,  Peninsula  of,  64,  68. 
.Sinnabris,  122. 
Sitnah,  Well  of,  99. 
Sirah,  Well  of,  99. 
Sisera,  Flight  of,  82. 
Solomon's  Palace,  59. 
Solomon's  Stables,  57,  160. 
Sorek,  Valley  of,  115. 
Stone  of  Bohan,  129. 
Succoth,  loi,  112. 
Survey  of  Western  Palestine,  47,  55, 

73- 
Sychar,  120-122. 

Taanach,  84. 

Tabbath,  1 12. 

Tabor,  Mount,  82,  84. 

Tarichea  (Kerak),  122. 

Telaslr,  118,  1 19. 

Tell  Arad,  71. 

Tell  el  Ful,  1 16. 

Tell  Hum,  41,  42,  43,  47. 

Tell  Neby  Mendeh,  154,  155. 

Tell  Salhiyeh  (Inscription*,  40,  44. 

Tell  Zif,  71. 


INDEX. 

237 

Temple,  Inscribed  Stone  of  the, 

167- 

Wady  Hamr,  145, 

169. 

Wady  Hesban,  183,  185. 

Temple  Walls,  159. 

Wady  el  Hessi,  142. 

Till,  Desert  of  the,  64,  142. 

Wady  Jideid,   1S4, 

Tiphsah,  119,  120. 

Wady  Kefrein,  185. 

Tirzah,  Royal  City.  81,  82. 

Wady  Madarah,  71. 

Tombs  of  the  Judges,  159. 

Wady  Marreh,  71. 

Tombs  of  the  Kings,  158. 

Wady  Musa,  142. 

Tripoli,  152. 

Wady  Muweileh,  65. 

Tyre,  199. 

Wady  Nasb,  141,  142. 

Tyropceon  Valley,  49,  52,  58. 

Wady  Rubadiyeh,  43,  44. 
Wady  Rukhmeh,  71. 

Umm  el  Am^^d,  41. 

Wady  Semakh,  44. 
Wady  esh  Seikh,  145. 

Valley  of  Achor  (Kelb  Valley), 

93- 

Wady  Sitte  Miriam,  166. 

Valley  of  Jezreel  (Wady  Jalin), 

112, 

Wady  Solaf,  145. 

114. 

Wady  Surar,  39. 

Vase  of  the  Temple,  197,  198. 

Wady  Watiyeh,  145. 

Virgin  Fountain,  160,  165,  166 

Wady  Zelegah,  142. 
Wady  Zerka  M"ain,  1S4. 

Wady  el  Abyadh,  71. 

Wady  Amarah,  145. 

Yakhmor  (Roebuck),  105. 

Wady  Amud,  43. 

Yarun,  Church  and   Inscription 

at, 

Wady  el   Arabah,   Survey   of, 

141- 

39- 

145- 

Yekin  (Cain),  102. 

Wady  Biyar,  142. 

Wady  Eyub,  166. 

Zamira  (es  Sumra),  152. 

Wady  Far' ah,  121. 

Zeboim,  92. 

Wady  Faynn,  67. 

Zephath,  69,  70. 

Wady  Feiran,  145. 

Zererath,  112. 

Wady   Fer'aun  (I'haraoh's  Va 

ley), 

Ziklag,  80,  116. 

166. 

Ziph,  The  Wood  of,  116. 

Wady  Fik,  44. 

Zoar,  loi. 

Wady  Gharandel,  145. 

Zoheleth  Stone,  165. 

Wady  Goweisah,  145. 

Zophim,  Field  of,  137. 

Wady  Hamman,  43,  44. 

Zoreah,  114. 

Harrison  and  Sons,  Printers  in  Oriiinitry  to  Her  Majesty,  St.  Martin's  Lane. 


PUBLICATIONS   OF   THE   SOCIETY. 


1.  The  SURVEY  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE.     See  p.  6. 

2.  The  GREAT   MAP   OF  WESTERN   PALESTINE.     In   26 

sheets  and  portfolio.  Price,  to  subscribers,  £2  2s.  ;  to  the 
general  public,  £i  y. 

3.  The  REDUCED  MAP  OF  WESTERN  PALESTINE.     In  6 

sheets  and  wrapper,  on  scale  of  ^  inch  to  the  mile.  Price,  to 
subscribers,  6s.  bd.  ;  to  the  general  public,  12s.  di 

4.  The     RECOVERY     OF    JERUSALEM.       By    Colonel    Sir 

Charles  Warren,  G.C.M.G.,  K.C.B.,  F.R.S.,  and  Co!.  Sir 
Charles  W.  V.'ilson,  K.C.B.,  F.R.S.,  LL.D.     Price  i6r. 

5.  OUR  WORK  IN   PALESTINE.     (Out  of  print.) 

6.  TENT  WORK  IN  PALESTINE.     By  I\Lijor  Conder,  D.C.L., 

R.E.     Price  4?.  6d. 

7.  IIETII    AND    MOAB.        By    Major    Conder,     D.C.L.,    R.E. 

Price  4J.  6d. 

8.  SYRL-VN    FOLK   LORE.      By  Major   Conder,   D.C.L.,   R.E. 

Price  4^-.  6d. 

9.  ALTAIC     HIEROGLYPHS     AND     HITTITE     INSCRIP- 

TIONS.    By  Major  Conder,  D.C.L.,  R.E.     Price  5^. 

10.  ACROSS    THE   JORDAN.     By  Herr  G.  Schumacher.     Price 

4s.  6d. 

11.  SURVEY    OF   THE    JAULAN.      By    Herr   G.    Schumacher. 

Price  4s.  6d. 

12.  SURVEY    OF    PELLA.      By  Herr  G.   Schumacher.     Free   to 

subscribers. 

13.  The    "MEMOIR    OF    TWENTY-ONE    YEARS'    WORK." 

Price  2s. 

14.  MOUNT  SEIR.      By  Professor   Edward    Hull,  M.A.,   LL.D., 

F.R.S.      Price  4^.  6d. 

15.  The     GEOLOGICAL     SURVEY     OF    PALESTINE.      By 

Professor  Edward  Hull,  M.A.,  LL.D.,  F.R.S.  (Uniform  with 
"The  Survey  of  Western  Palestine.")  Price,  to  Subscribers, 
I2J-.  6d. 

16.  NAMES     AND     PLACES     IN    THE     OLD    AND     NEW 

TESTAMENTS  AND  APOCRYPHA,  with  their  Modern 
Identification.     Price  3^.  6d. 

17.  HISTORY    OF   JERUSALEM.     By  Walter  Besant  and   Pro- 

fessor E.  H.  Palmer.      Price,  to  Subscribers,  55.  6d. 

(Preparing.)  THE  REDUCED  MAP  OF  PALESTINE, 
showing  the  East  and  the  West,  including  the  Surveys  already 
executed  in  the  East. 

(Preparing.)  The  same,  with  the  Old  Testament  names  and 
boundaries. 

(Pre]iaring.)  The  same,  with  the  New  Testament  names  and 
boundaries. 

The  QUARTERLY  STATEMENT.  Issued  every  quarter  free 
to  subscribers.  The  only  journal  devoted  entirely  to  questions 
of  Sacred  Topography,  Geography  and  Archaeology. 


\ 


/} 


^        <■    ^ 


-^y. 


'<. 


''.■  ,.^■■■•1*' 


'.    -  -;  •  ->■  ',   '■'■■'• 

,'.  t'  ■''  SV\''->' v" 

■•*  •  *   ..-.*  1 '  ■      '*''■■ 

t 

"-'  ■>•.'.!  .'  ''■^■•'-  ..  ;■ 

-   - 

■     a''  ^- ;  ■*.  ^ 

■  ■■--  -'•   ■■•  A.\  '■''.'• 

■  .  .;''--::vh,^:.;'.  p 

:  .  :   -,■  ■  r  .  r-  ;■-.•>  > 

.■   .:.As'-'">-.4-i.^v 

i    '-.^   \ 

' ."  .-V- 

:    .  '.:i'K*i-.      -    -■  -;■■■• 

•  .  .1  .• 

■.-':..i)^r^:      '    \y 

■    .   •'   '   ^i-..,                            .    T' 

N 

'.'  •:  ■  -"' ';  ',■'"       ■ '."  :■  ,1 

-    *  ■>,■  - . 

■':  -•'-"■''  ■    •-■-  I'ii 

'  •■":■;*"  ■' 

■'■■'^m 

■.'  «>  >.  -  ' 

.  ..:.%'.■>  'S 

^R 

Bf 

^^^' 

ill 

i^^K^^ 

'pj^i^^^^^' 

^^^^Hi'l 

^  Kf^'^^^^Sj>''f^*8^£«r- 

M^jf^wCirjr^-^^'^'"  n.'3u£*r^ 

^K^K 

UNIVERSITY  OF  TORONTO 
LIBRARY 


Acme    Library    Card    Pocket 

Under  Pat.  "  Kef.  Index  Kile." 
Made  by  LIBRAKY  BUEEAU